


Crown of Blood

by maevelin



Category: Klaroline - Fandom, Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: F/M, Klaroline, Vampires, klaroline drabbles, one shots
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-11-12
Updated: 2017-02-18
Packaged: 2018-01-01 08:20:35
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 16
Words: 30,494
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1042526
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maevelin/pseuds/maevelin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A collection of Klaroline one-shots and drabbles.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. I can't live in a world without you

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Forgive me love but I cannot live in a world without you, he thought, knowing that this would be a far too cruel fate for him to endure. Tonight no one could stop him from claiming her. Forever.

_This is the end_  
Hold your breath and count to ten  
Feel the earth move and then  
Hear my heart burst again

.

.

_._

He was standing in the dark.

Like a silent shadow he was observing her beautiful features. Her tender lips, her silky blond hair. She looked angelic in her sleep. Her breath and the sound of her heartbeat were divine sounds in his ears. Sounds that tormented him. That reminded him that in a few moments she would hate him forever.

So be it. He would give her forever even if it was against her will. He couldn't just let her fade away.

His human Caroline was sleeping peacefully unaware of his presence or his plans.

Enchanted blood. That was the cure for vampirism. His mother had used Tatia's blood to turn them into vampires and it was the same blood that was the cure. It was Ayanna that had used her magic in order to create the remedy. Blood was their curse and blood was to be their redemption.

He solved the mystery, he found the treasure he was looking for and he had achieved his goal. Elena was a human now. He had his chance to create his hybrid army again. Unfortunately Damon Salvatore had managed to steal some of Tatia's enchanted blood. That was an unfortunate turn of events.

They could use it against him and he could not allow that. He had to leave. So he did. He took many bags of Elena's blood and she agreed to provide him with more of her blood if he would leave them _**all**_ alone.

That was the deal, he would leave from Mystic Falls forever and he would send one of his hybrids twice a year to collect more of Elena's blood. Eventually she would have children and the Petrova line would continue until the next doppelganger would appear.

He left a year ago and let their little gang think that he would never return. In time they relaxed.

In time they felt safe. They should have known better though. They should have known that he would never leave without _**her**_. They should have known not to provoke him like this.

He was still enraged that Stefan and Damon had dared turn Caroline into a human too.

It was her wish. She wanted to become a human again. To live, have children, grow old and _… die_.

She claimed that it was her prerogative. Her damn humanity was now more than just a part of her. It was what she was. _A human_. A fragile mere human.

He knew that this was the end. She would lose her youth. She would eventually lose her beauty and then her life.

He was a vampire. He could count to ten and before he knew it seasons and years would pass and Caroline would be just a shadow of her present self. Eventually she would turn to ash. He could not allow that. He couldn't understand how it happened, but now he couldn't even imagine that there would come a day that he would have to live in a world without her in it.

For a year now he had compelled humans and vampires to watch her every move. Ready to give their lives in order to protect her. Hybrids were out of the question since he didn't want to attract any unwanted attention. The Salvatores were always on their toes.

Tyler Lockwood was always around her. He hadn't changed into a human though. He might have been ungrateful to him for turning him, he might have broken the sire bond, but it seemed that he was enjoying his vampirism more than he was willing to admit.

As for him. He was always waiting for the right moment. He gave her a year. It was enough.

Now he was standing in her room, next to her, watching her sleep. Knowing that no one could stop him from claiming her.

His hand caressed her cheek and waited.

His cold touch was enough to wake her up. Her eyes filled with terror as he put his hand hard on her mouth. She tried to scream and struggle, but he was to strong. In an instant she could tell what he was about to do and she pleaded with him with her beautiful eyes.

For a moment his gaze turned soft and she stopped moving. Her pleading eyes struck a chord within him. They stared at each other in the dark.

She was begging him to spare her human life, but there was no other way. He couldn't…he wouldn't lose her.

"Forgive me, love," he said.

…. _but I cannot live in a world without you_ … he thought, knowing that this would be a far too cruel fate for him to endure.

In a flash he bit his wrist drawing blood and before she could react he had her pinned on the bed and he shoved the bleeding wound in her mouth. She tried to fight him, but he was too strong. He was a vampire, an Original and she was just a human.

Even though she was mortal now, her luscious lips on his skin were a great temptation for him.

He was feeling her shaking her head against his hold, but he was not relenting. He kept feeding her his blood.

Eventually she surrendered to her fate, knowing that it was pointless to struggle. With his other hand he kept gently caressing her hair while her cheeks grew wet from tears that kept falling.

Blood was pouring into her mouth and she kept swallowing it against her will. He knew it was intoxicating and it would be the last thing she would taste as a human.

He wasn't taking any chances. He waited until she was high on his sanguine essence. Until there was more than enough of his blood in her system.

Maybe in time she would forgive him. Maybe in time she could even learn to love him. He wouldn't leave without her and if he had to he would wait centuries for her to forget her old life and their past. After tonight she would be a vampire again and most importantly she would be his.

He pulled his hand from her mouth and laid on top of her as his eyes turned gold in the dark.

"Please don't," she begged him again even though she knew it was in vain.

"Shhh," he whispered soothingly placing his finger on her lips that were red and smeared with his blood.

"There is no other way my love," he said as his lips touched the soft skin of her neck.

His fangs extended and he gently bit the tender flesh. He felt her body tensing as her blood filled his mouth. Her hands settled against his chest as he brought her impossibly closer to him. She didn't scream, she just whimpered.

Her blood was the most divine taste he ever had.

He clutched the back of her head and grasped her hair in a firm hold as he nestled his head against her blond locks and skin and kept taking all her essence in his mouth. Slowly draining her, knowing that he would never taste such a godly taste ever again. He was making sure that she was feeling no pain and he could hear her heartbeat slowing down, her chest heaving.

He was turning her death into pleasure and he could feel her fading away. Her hands fell from his chest and her body turned limp in his arms. He kept sucking her blood until he could hear her gasping for air.

He removed his fangs and breathed her scent in. Blood slowly tickled from her bleeding neck on the pillow.

" _Please forgive me,"_ he whispered knowing that she was now too far gone and she couldn't hear him.

He gently bit the open wound in her neck again and he heard her moaning in pleasure.

She fainted in his arms as the last drops of her blood touched his tongue.

He removed his fangs from her neck and licked his lips. He didn't want to waste even a single drop of her.

He looked at her body that lay lifeless now under him.

He kissed her cold lips. A kiss of death before she would be reborn again.

He took her in his arms and picked her up. There was no sound to torment him anymore. No breath, no heartbeat. She was dead and she was his. _Forever_.

The next morning Elizabeth Forbes found an empty bed and pillows stained with blood.

Many people tried to find her, but no one ever could. Caroline Forbes was never found. They never heard from her again.

_._

_._

_._

_For this is the end_  
I've drowned and dreamt this moment  
So overdue  
Swept away, I'm stolen

_._

_._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Many thanks to my beta Anastasia Dreams.  
> Song : Skyfall by Adele.


	2. The Artist's Funeral Pyre

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fire had set her free. In the flames she had surrendered her spirit and it was in the flames her immortality truly began. She was eternal, she was free and she belonged only to him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings : 
> 
> Really dark. Dark twisted -psychotic- Klaus. Horror. Tragedy. Non con. Death of character. No happy ending. 
> 
> (You have been warned!)

.

.

.

__By my lips into fan air_ _ _  
_ __The smock of my burning_ _ _  
_ __Curling and cursive_ _

__Hearts under fire and we're_ _ _  
_ __Going under if we can't be at peace_ _

.

.

.

Blond hair spilled on the pillow and her face contorted in pain.

Her eternal youth no longer lingered on her skin as it was now painted with a grey shade of death. Cruel and permanent. Irrevocable.

Her laughter no longer would echo in his ears and her smile would no longer brighten his world.

Ironically the artist inside him liked her like this. Even in death she was beautiful. Her still body wrapped in silk crimson sheets as her blood had soaked them and changed their color.

He wanted to memorize the picture. To be able to paint it afterwards. This would be his last memory of her. This would be the last time he would lay eyes upon her. So his eyes slowly traveled over the body of his lost lover taking in every detail. Appreciating the stillness; the everlasting beauty of her eternal sleep. Prolonging the moment. He sat next to her and let his fingertips travel over the rough skin. The hardness a contradicting feeling. He was used to touching her soft unblemished skin. Now the ice-cold flesh resembled a marble statue. He kept looking and touching. His hand caressing the dull hair. His fingers curling around the throat that no longer produced any breath.

He wanted to remember. To never forget. To keep this grotesque image of her along with the divine one from the first time he had seen her. Both mental images etched upon his memory forever.

Moments before, she was alive writhing under him; both lost in the throes of passion. Unsuspecting of what was going to happen to her only minutes later. Her skin alight with passion as her legs were tightly wrapped around him. His possessiveness had marked her allowing her to feel safe in his arms and she gave herself freely to him, holding nothing back. He was thrusting into her fiery sheath again and again; he got lost in her scent as the inner flame of her soul burned pure and bright for the last time. __Just for him.__

This was her own undoing. This was her fault. She had given everything to him. Once he had her she was so different from the girl he kept craving for. Once he had her she had surrendered completely and the challenge was lost. He had conquered her body, her heart and her soul and nothing was left for him to explore. She was weak for allowing him to possess her like this. Too trusting, too naïve.

She was his safety net, his haven. In the darkness she had become his light. But her light had dimmed as he experienced all she had to offer. The net became constricting and the haven became a redundant grey place that held no comfort for him any longer.

He could let her go, but he would never allow such a thing. For her to continue her life away from him would be a fate he would never be able to endure. And at the same time he could not keep on living next to her and allowing her to become an even more uninteresting and dull feature of his life.

He would rather lose her now and have her eternal memory become part of him than to let her live and turn into just an ordinary girl like any other he had met in his long existence. No, she didn't deserve that. She was special. She was meant to be different.

It was a pity that she was just a vampire like any other. Fleeting, fragile, temporary. No dagger would hold her frozen in time. No coffin would keep her safe from the world.

She was not an Original. She was just a girl. His girl for some time and his girl she would remain.

He watched her lifeless body, the exposed breasts and the long neck that were tainted now with his bites. The raw parched skin with the spilled blood over the places he had bitten her were the only signs of violence on her decaying body. The bruises had vanished under the blackened purplish shade that had conquered the once perfect ivory skin.

Every single time they have been together we would taste her and she would indulge in his blood afterwards, but this time he didn't allow her such a privilege. This time his hand had closed around her mouth violently as he pinned her to the bed. This time the poison from his bite would spread and it would force death to flow into her veins and into heart. This time he held her underneath him watching her life slip away from her pleading eyes. Terror had settled in her as she was unable to convince him to spare her.

He held her tight as she cried realizing her destiny. The spasms of her broken body reaching their deadly crescendo. She begged and she fought as he savagely took her body again and again forcing her last moments to be spent for his own pleasure. This was the last gift she could give him and he was greedy enough to take it by force. She belonged to him after all so her death would belong to him too.

He had smiled comfortingly at her as sounds of pain and terror escaped her throat. In those last moments he had taken her in his arms and held her tightly. He whispered stories from their past to her as he stroked her hair tenderly. He had gently kissed her perfectly sculpted lips drawing more blood from her each time and forcing more lethal bites on her skin. His gaze roamed over her as he resisted the urge to heal her. This was for the best.

With her last breath she had breathlessly called his name. And then she was gone.

He was pleased to know that her last moment was dedicated to him and only him.

And now hours had passed and he still watched her corpse that decorated his bed.

The smell of gasoline filled the room as he poured it all around and on her. The liquid sprayed over her spidery grey skin as her lifeless open eyes vacantly gazed off in space. He had already taken the liberty of covering the whole house with the offending substance that would purify and scorch away all the things she had ever touched.

He lit the match and threw it over her form lighting her up. It took less than a moment before instantly born flames started licking and eating away her skin. She looked like she was the embodiment of the sun as the fire swallowed her whole. But he knew better. She could never be the sun for they were not meant to be creatures that walked into the light of day. She had been the moon and the stars for him and now she would become the restless song in his heart that would follow him into the silence of his eternal night. A candlelight in the darkness.

This was Caroline's funeral pyre. The flames were dancing around her, eating her whole. Shadows began battling with the light as the fire roared. The smoke rose taking Caroline's spirit hostage as her resilient flesh started melting away.

The mirage of the blazing fire danced in his eyes as his maniacal gaze hungrily took in the last golden picture of Caroline getting lost into the flames.

 _"_ _ _You were the one Caroline,"__ he whispered as he slowly turned around and left.

With each step he felt liberated and free. Behind him his safe haven was turning to ash as the flames conquered the walls and everything inside the mansion. Smoke rose higher and higher. Sparks traveling to the heavens. The fire ripping the air and the oxygen apart. Strange orange glow danced around as the darkness of the eventide was giving its place into the flames.

In the still of the night the house crumbled and fell under the weight of his fiery destruction taking away the woman he had once claimed to love. The woman he loved and cherished. The woman that would now become his most loving remembrance until the end of time.

Now she would always stay his Caroline forever. Untainted by the ordinary. No one would ever have her. No one would ever lay hands or eyes upon her ever again. She would exist only in his drawings. His artistic hands would be the only thing that would return her to life. His obsession would be her only getaway into existence. She would become perfection and no one would ever be able to compete with that. Now she was truly eternal.

__He had set her free._ _

As the centuries passed he always kept a fond memory of the girl with the golden hair that looked like a halo around her in his perfect pictures. She was his masterpiece. He had painted and drawn her countless times. Each time the result getting better than the last.

He couldn't stop drawing her. Her body always surrounded in flames. Her laughter always echoing. Her whispers burning hot in his ears.

And every year at the anniversary of her death he would always take a blond girl with green eyes into his bed. At the dawn flames would rise again and __**her**__ memory would come to life as __**her**__ funeral pyre would rise again. He always drew her image afterwards. She was always with him. She was now extraordinary. She always lived in the fire and the artist in him would always bring her back to life at the eve of her death, when her immortality truly began.

Once he had promised her that he intended to be her last, however long it would take.

__He had kept his promise._ _

.

.

.

__Shame it's such a …_ _ _  
_ __Shame….when hearts under fire_ _ _  
_ __When hearts under fire…_ _ _  
_ __We're up and free_ _

__._ _

__._ _

__._ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -Song : Lea Luna - Hearts under fire.  
> -Many thanks to my beta Anastasia Dreams


	3. Snowflakes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After killing Carol Lockwood Klaus’s need for revenge isn’t sated.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \- This one-shot takes place after the events in episode 4x09 of The Vampire Diaries.  
> \- Not edited one-shot

When she returned to her home she expected to come into an empty living room and finally to be able to get some rest. She needed to close her eyes and pretend that this night was of no importance.

Tyler wasn’t picking his phone, April was nowhere to be found, Elena was with Damon, Stefan was suffering and all she could think of in the midst of chaos was snowflakes. Freaking snowflakes.

She didn’t lie to him when she told him that she was getting vibes of loneliness out of his painting. It was real and deep in her heart she was trying so hard to not feel guilty for sending Klaus to his doom. She shouldn’t feel anything, and certainly not compassion, for the man that kept destroying their lives ever since he came at this town. And there she was with her mind filled of memories of him and feeling confused and lost. She should be worrying about Tyler, about Elena and Stefan about everything else but him and all she could thing was about crystal lonely snowflakes.

But as she got into her house all feelings of guilt and confusion vanished. They were replaced by undiluted terror.

She froze and she even stopped breathing.

Klaus was there. Covered in blood, the crimson liquid dripping from his hands and face and coloring his snow white shirt.

But was creating terror in her heart was not his appearance or the fact that he stood there unharmed. Which meant that Tyler’s plan had royally failed.

It was the fact that his hand was wrapped around her mother’s throat. He was holding her mother against the wall crushing her windpipe while Elizabeth Forbes couldn’t do anything to help herself.

Caroline trembled but didn’t dare to move.

“Please don’t,” was the only faint whisper that escaped her lips. She would do anything. Anything he wanted. Anything he would ask her to do. Anything in return for her mom’s life.

“How nice of you to join us sweetheart,” he said with a casual tone and he tightened his grip around her mother’s neck and Elizabeth Forbes whimpered unable to breath.

Tears started falling from Caroline’s eyes. This couldn’t be happening. Her mom was staring at her with fear. She couldn’t lose her.

“ ** _This_** _is our thing_ love, you are meant for a distraction and I am always there to fall for your charms,” he said with menace.

Caroline gulped as the memory of their latest encounter came at her mind. She was a distraction again and she was foolish enough to think that he wouldn’t realize it.

Her heart was beating faster and faster and she could see that her mother’s face was turning blue and her eyes were slowly closing. She sped at him without thinking but his free hand wrapped around her neck too keeping her in arms length with no effort. Her hands gripped his hand trying to push him but he wasn’t relenting. He wasn’t hurting her but she couldn’t do anything to help her mom. He kept his hold on her.

“You are beautiful Caroline but I am not one to tolerate betrayal and you…” he stopped for a moment to see her beautiful eyes staring him with fear. Silently pleading him.

“And you have betrayed me more that once!” his voice was a low lethal whisper.

“Then kill ME!” she screamed at him crying and time stood still.

He saw her fear and she saw his pain.

The idea of killing her was unbearable to him. He masked that foreign emotion by telling himself that if he killed her mother then he would hurt her more. He did the same with Carol. This punishment was far more cruel.

Caroline would have to face a life of loneliness and guilt just like him.

The only thing was that he didn’t want that fate for her. He didn’t want to be the source of her despair. Snuffing her light would not only hurt her. It would hurt him too.

_A vampire greatest weakness…_

His own words from centuries ago echoed in his mind. Taunting him.

_He was weak._

“Please, I’ll do anything just don’t do this. Kill _me_ ,” she completely surrendered and she begged him while her tears kept falling on his hand.

He let go of Elizabeth Forbes and she fell on the floor. She had passed out of the lack of air but she was alive.

He didn’t let go of _her_. Not just yet. They stood there as he studied her features. He knew that she would anything he would ask her to do now. She could be his for all eternity. All he would have to do was command her to follow him and she would.

_But this was not the way he wanted her._

She seemed to have resigned to her fate. The fear had vanished from her eyes. She thought that he was going to kill her so when his grip became gentler and his bloody thumb caressed her wet cheek she stared at him with wide open eyes feeling shocked and lost.

He retrieved his hand and took a step back. She immediately went next to her mother. Kneeling beside her and holding her protectively. She heard his voice and her gaze locked with his. It was in that rare moment that she could see the human inside the beast.

“Immortality is gift and a curse. Sooner or later you will be left alone in this world. Your only companions will be your sins and your memories. We remain but everything else fades. They fade,” he told her pointing her mother with his finger.

_“We are meant to walk this earth alone. Forever.”_

With those words he turned to leave and she looked at his figure feeling grateful that he spared her and her loneliness was not going to begin tonight. She held her mother tighter in her arms, still feeling shaken up and wondering why he had shown mercy to her when it was true that she had betrayed him.

“Why?” she asked him.

He halted and closed his eyes. Why did he spare her? Why didn’t he kill her and everyone she loved? Why didn’t he ask anything in return? Why was he showing her that even in his darkest moments he wasn’t able to hurt her?

“I wouldn’t have done it for anyone else,” he said.

And he really hadn’t. Just for her.

She couldn’t move. She saw him disappear in a blink and she just held her mom tighter.

And yet again for some reason all she could still think about was snowflakes.  


	4. The thrill of the….chase?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She had been running from him for decades but now she was finally in his grasp.   
> "Do you know what is the worst torture for someone?" he asked her while his hands travelled on her body. Now it was her time to realize that with Klaus things aren't always what they seem.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \- Many thanks to my beta Anastasia Dreams.

.

.

.

Your mind is playing hard to get but that's ok…

Cause you know that I know that you'll be mine someday…

.

.

.

Slow seduction, sweaty skin on skin, fingers intertwined, passionate kisses and intimate moments were a form of torture she would have never expected. Not from him. And yet here she was, pressed against the cold glass of the window of their penthouse in New York moaning and shamelessly moving against him as his hands and body were working miracles on her.

She had been running from him for decades. They all were. After their failed attempt to desiccate him they all knew that it was neither run or stay and be killed (and with Klaus that was the best case scenario.)

If it was up to her, back then, she would have stayed in Mystic Falls. She would have fought, even him – and that said a lot about her didn't it? – in order to maintain some normalcy in her life even if that would get her killed in the end. Or so she kept telling herself because deep down she knew that he wouldn't hurt her, she was full of light and all that jazz (she didn't blame him for the mushy outdated compliments, he was a bazillion years old after all and who was she to judge?, ok he was also kinda cute when he was telling her that - it was either that or that accent anyway!) and what was scaring her the most was that the torture he had in mind for her was completely different than the plans he had for everyone else.

But she wasn't on her own and she wanted to be with Tyler. Running together would be an adventure after all, wouldn't it? Together against the whole world…well back then it did seem exhilarating…

Being fugitives and lovers on the run wasn't as romantic as they thought it would be, though. They kept running from an Original – or so they thought – and that was taking its toll.

Elena had disappeared with Stefan and Damon, Bonnie had cast a spell to make herself, Jeremy and Matt disappear and that left her and Tyler running together into the sunset. The problem was that the sunset was more of a run till you can't run anymore. They would hide and never rest. They always were scared of the shadows. Always afraid of what the consequences of being discovered would be. They did the whole shebang, they changed identities, clothes, styles. Caroline Forbes was dead to the world. Tyler Lockwood was like he never existed.

But eventually the flame died. The sex became just a physical act and all innocence was lost. She didn't feel for Tyler what she used to feel and he didn't feel it either. Soon they became just friends (well with benefits, because let's face it, vampirism comes with unbearable needs and not just blood cravings!) and after that they took separate roads. Tyler at heart remained a werewolf and needed the security of a pack so he found one. She was not familiar with the whole werewolf mentality concept though. She couldn't function like that. She wanted to be free and to make her own decisions… on her own! She didn't want to admit it, but there was a voice in her mind that kept whispering again and again that there was a whole world waiting for her. A world that Tyler would never claim as long as he was holding on to his werewolf nature (and a lone wolf was not his thing either so sooner or later he was going to find his "mate" and that most certainly wasn't her!)

She craved something else. She still remembered the promise of a beautiful future. There was genuine beauty out there and all she had to do was…ask. Could she do that?

No. She couldn't. She may have changed a lot of names, but Caroline Forbes was still who she was. And Caroline Forbes was able to travel alone, to chase her dreams on her own. She didn't need a man, any man (even if he had dimples!), to show to her what the world had to offer. She was on the run, but she was free!

Somehow she pretended that she was ok with her independence, that she was feeling empowered being a wild girl on the open road and somehow she had convinced herself that being alone didn't hurt. Pretense gets you through the day, right? (Well the fact that eternity meant a lot of days and a lot of pretense was something she didn't want to talk about! Neurotic much?)

She kept running and dodging and being a lonely femme fatale (and yes high heels, red hair and smoky eyeliners did the trick for some years) exploring the world because she knew that the alternative would be to surrender to a man with blue piercing eyes and sandy hair that looked like an angel, but was the devil incarnate (the fact that she also had the predatory nature of a blood thirsty killer never crossed her mind…pinky swear!).

She would have to give in to the man that had promised her the world and somehow even then she knew that it was all a matter of time. Because time was running out and in the end she would fall into his hands. That thought was making her run even faster and further even if deep down she knew that he wouldn't hurt her. Maybe she was insane, maybe she was giving more credit to herself and to the infatuation he had once shown her, but she just knew that he wouldn't hurt her.

It was a gloomy day when her running days came to a halt. The day her mother died. The day that she decided that enough was enough! She was going to go back home to say her last goodbyes and she knew that he would be there waiting for her.

She didn't care. She was tired of running. She was tired of constantly looking behind her back. She was tired of being alone (and she was alone, Stefan had promised to never let anything happen to her, Tyler had promised eternal love, Bonnie and Elena had promised to be her friends forever and now all she had left were broken promises. And she was trying so hard not to think that maybe it was Klaus that would be the one to never break a promise. Now wasn't that a twisted unsettling -and yet comforting- thought?)

Beyond logic she returned to Mystic Falls for the funeral. It hurt so damn much to be there like this. Deep down she was grateful that Klaus had never taken advantage of the fact that Elizabeth Forbes was stubborn enough to stay in Mystic Falls. She would always respect the fact that he had never used her mother to get to her.

But her mom was now dead and he was there to take her with him. They didn't exchange words. She just followed him into his car and never looked back as he drove away to a future where she wouldn't have to be alone anymore.

Maybe that was his plan all along. Not to chase after her, but to wait for her to come to him.

He never mentioned the fact that she had run away. He never asked her anything or forced her to tell him anything she didn't want to. She refrained to tell him things from her past when she was running from him (was she running from him or just postponing the inevitable?) and when she would break that rule he would listen and sometimes he would smirk (she so didn't want to know what that smirk meant, she so didn't, but what the hell did it mean?)

He took his sweet time with her (come on did he have to wait to the point of literally driving her mad with need and desire?…of course he did silly Caroline!) teasing her and prolonging every sensual moment. A perfect gentleman, a naughty demon and a patient man (and she would know because he was always taking her out shopping and there were not many that could keep up with Caroline Forbes in a shopping -never-ending- spree!). Touches and smiles. And the thick sexual tension was rapidly building and she couldn't wait to be consumed by it! (He was going to make her beg wasn't he?)

He trained her (he even gave her vervain and conditioned her to pain, damn that hurt like a bitch!) and he would teach her things (literature, music, old movies) that would open her mind and her horizons. They travelled together all over the world.

Museums, art and music. Everlasting beauty. They were eternal, they were together, they were forever. Eventually they became lovers (and yes she begged!). In a swirl of emotion, in a way that no human heart could ever experience, in way that would have her begging for more (so much more!)

She didn't ask him if he was still chasing after the people she once knew and loved. She didn't ask him what he would do if he would ever find them and he didn't mention it either.

She was with him now and she knew what that meant. Being with Klaus wasn't an easy task, but it was definitely well worth it. All he asked was her loyalty; all she asked was never to break his promise.

It took them decades to end here. Against the glass and in the end over the floor next to the fireplace (ok sure vampires didn't feel cold but they were still bohemian creatures and romantics or at least she was and he was humoring her as always…).

She was content and she would have never imagined that being captured by him would be such a sweet agony. Now she was craving for more of that exquisite torture (who wouldn't?).

He was caressing her shoulder blade with his fingertips and she was signing contently when he whispered in her ear.

"Do you want to know a secret, sweetheart?"

She smiled and turned her head towards him.

"Always," she said.

"Do you know what is the worst torture for someone?"

She gulped and watched that evil playful glint in his eyes that only he could master.

When she didn't answer he brought her closer while his fingers kept tracing lazy patterns on her shoulder.

"To be on the run, never settle somewhere, always live in fear," he said as he nipped at her ear.

Shivers went through her spine. She knew that emotion too well.

"Now do you want to know what the greatest irony is?" he asked her smirking (and it was really hard to concentrate when his hands were taking such sinister routes on her body!)

"To run like hell when no one is actually chasing you," he said and waited for her reaction.

She froze and when she saw the mischievousness in his gaze it dawned on her.

"No one…What?" she screeched (and for the love of God could he stop doing that with his hands?! He was so distracting her!)

She glared at him waiting for an explanation and his laughter was so taunting her right now! (So were his hands! He should stop! …Oh who was she kidding! He should never stop!)

"Well I have been spreading some rumors here and there to keep everyone on their toes, but aside from that…let's just say that if I wanted to find them I would have already…but where would be the fun in that love?" he explained to her with a shrug like what he was telling her was of no importance.

"So all this time…." she stopped her phrase and looked expectantly at him.

"All this time your friends have been running when…" he raised one of his eyebrows at her.

"When nobody was after them," she whispered, wincing.

He smiled and kissed her. This was one more of his lessons. One-to-one strategy by the devil himself!

Katherine, Stefan, Damon, Elena, Tyler, all of them were just pawns in his game. He wanted them to run, to live in fear, basically to not live at all. And all of that while he would do nothing than just sit down, laugh and watch them fall in his trap.

She was a pawn too. He had played the same game with her too.

"Not you Caroline, I was always after you, one step behind, waiting for you to come to me" he told her serious this time like he had read her mind (and maybe he could, she was always so transparent when it came to him.)

She looked at him surprised. It wasn't her imagination. Every time she would feel that someone was actually watching her, following her, being close to her it was him. He knew where she was all along.

He slowly kissed her. She could understand now that he was always there. Watching from afar, protecting her and waiting (stalkerish much?)

Giving her the time she needed to grow up. The time she needed to be free before she would come to him. He kept his promise; he had told her he would wait for her, for a day, a year, a century. Truth to be told, he had never threatened her. She ran because of the assumption she and the rest of them had made. It was their choice and he was just laughing at their idiocy.

Except for the anger she was feeling towards his Machiavellian nature right now there was also one more emotion that was warming her heart. In a weird way, even when she was alone, she was never alone. He was always there, waiting for her. And that was more than enough. It was what she needed and what she would always need.

She gave herself completely to him that night knowing that he would always be there and that he was willing to share even his secrets with her.

When the time came to ask him if he was ever going to stop his little game with the "fugitives on the run" as he was calling them, he would laugh and tell her that maybe in a few centuries he would.

"Why should he spoil his fun so soon?"

.

.

.

…It's just the thrill of the chase…


	5. I can feel your pain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I promise you, I will do anything it takes to make this stop, I will find a way Caroline, I swear!" What if it was Caroline that had killed Connor? Now she is having hallucinations and Klaus is the only one that can feel her pain. AU klaroline one-shot based on 4x06.

.

.

.

_You're living in fear that no one will hear your cries_

…

_Slowly fading away_  
You're lost and so afraid  
Where is the hope in a world so cold

.

.

.

She had almost killed her mother!

Her hands had blood on them. It was sticky and it was burning her. How could she do that?

What kind of monster was she? She felt herself falling and falling. For the first time in her vampire life the temptation to shut her emotions off was there strong and unrelenting. But she couldn't. She was chocking on her own tears and she was terrified.

Tyler had stopped her in time. She had stabbed her mom with a knife and if it wasn't for him her mother would probably be dead.

But she wasn't after her mother. She was after Connor. No one could understand. Ever since she killed him, all those hours ago, she was seeing him everywhere.

She had gone to the tunnels to help Elena free Jeremy and she saw Elena feeding on the hunter. She had recognized the rage in her eyes and she knew that if she didn't stop her Elena would end up killing Connor and she didn't know if her friend could handle such guilt. So she stepped in front and prevented Elena from making the worst mistake of her life.

But Connor had attacked them and her survival instincts kicked in and all she could think was that she had to protect Elena and herself. So before she even knew it Connor was laying on the floor with his neck snapped.

She had killed a man again. She was a murderess.

She deserved to be punished, but what was happening to her was too cruel. Connor was there, haunting and tormenting her.

She had stabbed her mother thinking that she was Connor. Tyler was there and tried to help, but all she could think was that she had to run far away. Then Tyler had vanished and in front of her stood Connor. She had to hide, she had to stay away.

The shame was killing her!

"Not in the way you killed me, Caroline," Connor's voice was taunting her. He was everywhere!

"You are monster, you deserve to die!" he was telling her again and again. And he was right! Maybe she should.

She kept running into the forest. All she wanted was to make Connor stop following her, but it was pointless.

"Caroline."

She picked up her head and saw Connor looking at her. She wanted to scream and she took a step back moving her head right and left and mumbling for him to leave her alone.

Somewhere in the back of her mind she could swear that this voice belonged to Stefan, but it was Connor's eyes that kept judging her.

Before she could run away two strong hands trapped her in a steely embrace.

Someone was carrying her away and a familiar scent enveloped her. He was moving faster than even her vampire senses could comprehend. Everything around her was a blur and at the same time it all seemed to be moving in liquid slow motion.

Strangely she felt safe in that embrace as the world kept moving faster and faster. That scent was making her feel calm and had a strange soothing effect as the air kept hitting her face.

She heard a man's voice whispering to her that all would be alright.

She knew that voice. _Klaus._

Before she knew it they had run a great distance and they were in his mansion. Klaus had wrapped his muscular arm around her neck and was tugging her along with him while he was giving orders to one of his hybrids to follow them.

She kept squirming and struggling, yelling to him to let her go. But he wasn't listening to her. He kept pushing her forward. Dread was covering her now. What did he want with her?

They kept moving further into the mansion and the hybrid that was following them was now opening a door made of solid wood and steel.

Klaus shoved her in without removing his hand from her upper chest and even though she knew that it was pointless to fight him she kept struggling against his hold.

"Let go of me!" she yelled at him frustrated.

He felt his body turning rigid for a moment before he momentarily smelled her hair and then sighed.

"Certainly sweetheart," he said and gently let her go.

She stepped away from him and noticed that she was in …a bedroom?

Hell no!

She kept staring at the room, at the bed. This wasn't good! This wasn't good at all!

She then saw that there were so many statues and paintings everywhere, but she also noticed that there were no windows as she heard Klaus's voice coming from behind her. She turned and looked at him.

"I apologize for the lack of windows, but it is to preserve the art and of course to prevent you from taking of your daylight ring and burning yourself to death in the sun," he explained to her in a voice that was somewhere in between despair and mockery.

"What are you talking about? I am not going to kill myself, I would never do that!" she said confused.

He looked at her silently for a moment. She felt herself blushing. She knew what he was thinking. There was a time that she had given up. There was a time that he was the one that lifted her spirits. The night of her birthday a part of her wanted to die. It was Klaus that gave her hope that night and made her think of all the things she could still have in her life.

It was Klaus that had told her that he had considered ending his existence in the past and at that moment she had seen sincerity and torment in his eyes.

_Like she was seeing it now…_

"Oh, but you'll want to. I did," he simply told her, "Problem is I am immortal," he said as he looked at her with hooded eyes.

"You went through this?" her voice was now gentle. She now could understand that what he had told her the night of her birthday was true in so many awful ways.

"Yes I did, for 52 years, 4 months and 9 days," he said and she gasped.

He turned his back on her as he kept talking.

"I was tormented in my dreams where every waking moment was a never ending torture," he said and she could hear his voice cracking.

He turned and looked at her. His eyes filled with sympathy. He was bluntly honest with her even if he knew that this was now her torture.

This was his confession of pain. A pain that now belonged to her.

"It was the only period of my life that I actually felt time," his eyes where now locked with hers as he was telling her what was in stored for her.

She shivered under his gaze and swallowed hard.

"You knew this would happen to anyone that killed Connor didn't you?" she accused him.

"You shouldn't have been involved in this Caroline," he told her, his voice slightly judgmental.

But they both knew that this was who she was. She could never stand by while her friends were in danger.

"I had to help Elena," she whispered looking everywhere but him.

She felt his gaze on her. Intense, fiery and somehow that was comforting her.

"And now I have to help you," she heard him mumbling, probably to himself.

He turned and started walking towards the door.

"How did you make it stop?' she desperately asked him.

He abruptly stopped and closed his eyes. He turned his attention to her once more. He sighed and looked at her.

For a moment he hesitated.

"I didn't, eventually it just stopped," he told her and something that resembled helplessness and pity flashed through his eyes.

Her eyes filled with unshed tears and she hugged herself.

In a flash he was standing in front of her holding her from her shoulders.

"I promise you, I will do anything it takes to make this stop, I will find a way Caroline," he promised.

She wanted to say something but she couldn't. She was trembling in his arms.

"I swear!" he said and she believed him. He wasn't lying and he was giving her hope.

The tears fell and he swept them away with his thumbs. She looked at him and saw how this was affecting him too. He really cared for her in a way she couldn't explain.

And deep in her heart she was hurting that he had to go through what she was going through right now. For a moment she could feel his torment and she was forgetting hers.

It was a silent understanding between them. And she found herself trusting him. He was Klaus, he was evil and cruel, but right now she felt like he was her only salvation. Her only hope.

He let her go and went to the door.

This time he didn't turn around when he warned her.

"The hallucinations tend to appear in strange forms, Caroline," he said and she shuddered.

"Just hold on," he whispered and if she wasn't a vampire she wouldn't have heard him.

He knocked on the door and his hybrid opened it. He went out leaving her alone.

She heard the lock shifting and she heard him ordering his hybrids to not let her out, to not let anyone get in and to keep her safe at all costs.

Then all was silent and she sat on the bed. He had locked her in and if she had to be honest she would rather be here than anywhere else. She was feeling strangely safe knowing that Klaus would do anything in his power to help her. And maybe she was indeed crazy because right now she trusting him like she had never trusted anyone else before.

It was then that she realized that for as long as he was with her, her hallucinations had stopped.

_._

_._

_._

_I am with you_  
I will carry you through it all  
I won't leave you I will catch you

…

_And I'll be your hope when you feel like its over_   
_And I will pick you up when your whole world shatters_

_._

_._

_._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Many thanks to my beta Anastasia Dreams  
> *Song: Not Alone by Red


	6. Many names, many faces

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In his long existence Klaus Mikaelson had encountered so many faces and so many names. All blended together but none was the one he really wanted.

Her name was Camille. She had beautiful blue eyes that sparkled bright and blond silken hair that he loved to caress. He fell in love with her almost instantly. She could reach and understand his soul in ways no one else could. _Almost anyone else_ _could._

Her name was Carlise. She had the most enchanting eyes he had seen. Those eyes could reflect every shade of blue. She had a laughter that made him smile even when he was in his darkest moments. He came to care for her and feel about her and he let her touch even the darkness of his soul. No one ever did that for him. _Almost no one_.

Her name was Cardelia. But he called her Car. Her blond locks looked like a halo around her head. Her green eyes resembled a unique shade of blue. She could shine in ways that calmed him. Her light could rival the sun and he was in awe by it. He had never seen such a thing before. _Never?_

Her name was Charisma. She was a spitfire. She would always call him out on his mistakes and turn him on instantly. She could look at him with disdain and with passion. She never backed down and she always spoke her mind. She was stubborn and she irritated him in ways no other ever did. _Except maybe once one other did_.

Her name was Calie. She was compassionate and she was always helpful to others. A blond blue eyed angel. A mischievous devil. She depended on the attraction he felt for her and at times she even used that against him. And he let her. And he let her wrong doings against him slide. He never touched a hair on her head because he knew that no one else could stand against him and play with his affections like that. _Almost no one else_.

Her name was Chavonne. She was awfully courageous and she always found herself in trouble. Her blue eyes always craved for adventure and she always stood brave even when calamity stroke. He had saved her multiple times and he always hoped for her to be at least grateful. He wanted to see a gentle smile on her beautiful lips. A need he had never felt for anyone else. _Well at least not in some time_.

Her name was Cassie. She had the sexiest wavy blond hair and the most adorable freckles on the bridge of her nose. She could be quite immature at times. She always cared about things he couldn’t understand. Her social prestige was too important for her. She liked to let herself get lost in dances and events and she was always the soul of the party. She was the cutest thing he had ever encountered in his long immortal life. _Well almost the cutest thing he had ever encountered in his long immortal life._

Her name was Cadence. When he found her she was bruised and battered. She had been tortured and abused and yet her blue eyes soon sparkled with hope again. She rose from her ashes stronger. He had almost never seen a person being able to do that. __Just once before and in a much more bewildering way.__

Her name was Chantal. He was attracted to her instantly but as time passed by his infatuation changed into something else. He admired her soul. She had the most amazing capacity for forgiveness he had ever seen. He could swear that he had never seen a woman capable to forgive someone’s mistakes and evil deeds like Chantal did. _But he knew that such a vow would be a terrible lie._

Her name was Coral. She was strong, ageless, fearless. She thrived at being a vampire and she took every advantage her nature gave her at heart. She enjoyed her eternal youth and she would never change who she was for the person she used to be before. She was like him in so many ways and that satisfied his restless soul for a while. ___The only problem was that…they were not the same.___

Her name was Caressa. She saw his dark nature and yet she never turned her back on him even when she was against him. She believed that everyone had a good side inside them and so did he. He was touched by the way she saw into his soul. But after a while whenever she spoke he couldn’t hear what she was saying. He could only hear other words that burned his psyche. _Anybody capable of love is capable of being saved._

Her name was Catalina. When he first met her she was dying. She was fatally ill and yet there she lied on her death bed not cowering in the face of death. Her blond hair was matted and her blue eyes were sending him a gaze full of pain. She confessed to him that she didn’t want to die. Her will to live moved him. His blood gave her a new lease on life and he could have never dreamed of doing that for anyone else. _Even though he knew that he had done it once before and it had meant more in ways that not even he could comprehend._

Her name was Chloe. She was a young woman with a pale complexion and curly blond hair. She was a flawed girl full of insecurities and self doubt. And yet she grew up to be quite courageous. She grew up and turned her weaknesses into strength of character. He was amazed by her personal growth. _If only he hadn’t seen it before._

Her name was Crystal. She always paid great attention to detail and she was excessively competitive. A blond sassy overachiever he would call her. She was extremely loyal and determined. She had a sensitive nature and she was loving and she always tried to do the right thing. _And yet what at the beginning enthralled him in the end irritated him to no end because it reminded him of what he couldn’t have._

Her name was Caralynn. She was caring and kind and selfless and yet neurotic and insecure. Her exterior was made by a facade of confidence but no one could deny that she was beautiful and strong. _And he fancied her for a while only to realize that she wasn’t too smart to be seduced by him…She wasn’t unique._

Her name was Carina. And he just passed her by. She was just a pale pitiful imitation.

As years turned to decades and decades to centuries he had tried so hard to fill the emptiness and the void she left behind. He even tried to forget her and to let another take her place in his heart. But none was like her. None was _her_.

No other, no matter how much they would look like her, managed to erase her memory and his promise to her.

He still craved for her and he still waited for her to come to him. He still intended to be her last love no matter how long it would take. And as centuries passed him by he found himself attracted to others that resembled her only to realize that no other could ever be the real thing or take her place.

None had her beauty, her light, her soul. 

Many names and many faces.

But none was… _Caroline._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No beta.


	7. Crown of thorns, life of no roses

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Experiencing their unbidden desire for each other was the ending of a love story that never was. He had once promised her the world but the crown he was offering had many thorns.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Unedited.

_It was as if her “confession” had turned into rejection for both of them. It was an emotion that seemed to cripple her resolve but the silence around them was louder than the tempting voices inside her mind._

_Her body was thrumming with life. She felt whole and content and… lost. However that was it. The sex had been amazing but that what it was and it was over._

_Because the man that was getting dressed in front of her in the middle of the woods, the man that had ravished her for endless hours and now knew each and every contour and curve of her body, was still…Klaus._

_He was still the same monster of a man that manipulated and pushed and spread terror to people. To people loved._

_The same nightmare was still hidden underneath the surface. Klaus would not change. He would still kill, savage and destroy everything in his passage. Each kind word would always invite a threat from him and that scared her. She was not afraid to admit that she was afraid of him and of what she would become by his side._

_She was not like him. She could never be like him and if she were to give to him her soul aside from her body she would then forever fear the reflection she would see in the mirror._

_Giving in to their attraction was the one and only thing that would take him out of her mind and her life. And now it was over._

_It was then that Klaus turned around. The satisfaction they both felt was now dimmed by the impending farewell. She somehow trusted him to keep his promise to never return and she could not understand why her heart was complaining in grieving whispers._

_He approached her with a gaze that she could not translate. She could not understand if the shine in his eyes was satisfaction for a challenge conquered or if it was a thin disguise for the desire that still lingered and invited her to join him._

_His hands grasped her shoulders and she raised her eyes to him. The uninvited desire she always felt for him was still there. It was not diminished, it was not at all extinguished. It was still demanding and painful and heartbreaking._

_It was still so confusing._

_“You said you will leave. You promised,” she reminded him as the sun began to set casting its fading glow all around them._

_“And never to return,” he promised her again and she gulped before she nodded._

_His smile made her heart beat faster. It was bitter and sweet at the same time._

_“You want a simple life Caroline. I understand this. You want to live your human dreams. You want something easy, normal; plain even…but alas…this is not who you are,” he said with conviction._

_“Klaus-”_

_His finger touched her lips and silenced her objection._

_“Your perfect life will turn its colors to grey shades after a century or two, sweetheart. And then you will crave everything you now fear. You will desire a different taste of life. More thrilling ventures. Mark my words, the day will come that you’ll want whatever now feels painful, devastating and difficult,” he vowed with a knowing look because he had once been where she was now and he knew what was in store for her in the future._

_She could not know it yet but when the boundaries of her human life would crumble and fall she would crave for all the shuttering and passionate and life changing moments she was now terrified of._

_“You are compromising Caroline when you are…extraordinary,” he admired and pitied her with his words and he gently kissed her forehead._

_He then let her go and took a step back._

_“Time, sweetheart. I won’t come to you but in time you will come to me… and I will be there waiting for you…however long it does take,” he simply said to her again and she didn’t know why but unbidden tears came to her eyes._

_“You can be a queen Caroline,” his voice rose like a shroud of smoke all around her. A tone so soft like silk and so hard like a thorn._

_“You can have it all.”_

A long time ago she had been too young to understand. She had thought his words to be perfect delivered lines that held no truth or honesty. Just one more temptation for her in order to end their pull and push game; empty words to make her fall for him and to give in to everything he offered.

However he had been right when he had told her that vampires needed to adjust their perception of time.

She had lived her human life. She had gone to college, she had learned and studied and made a life for herself. She was indeed an overachiever and she had managed to combine her human dreams with her vampire nature. She might had fallen and hurt herself once or twice but she would continuously put herself back on her feet and she would move on. In the end she had been proud for everything she achieved and she had been happy and Klaus’s words faded and didn’t matter.

And then that life ended and a new one followed and then another and another and another. The pattern remained the shame.

Her eyes, once thirsty to see the world, were now full of isolation and loneliness. She had travelled the world and she had seen its wonders. Truth to be told her eyes still sparkled with the genuine beauty she would encounter through the ages but the lack of companionship was taking its toll. She had no one to share her adventures, her hopes and dreams. Faces from the past and present resurfaced in her life but they never stayed.

She had memorialized her greatest moments and she had hoped for new ones to come. However she could count only a few times that she was truly happy, content and complete. Those briefest moments belonged to the past and shone to memory. They were a reminder of who she was not anymore and of who she used to be. Those moments of reminiscing swirled and flared like a flame and filled the air with deafening reverberations of echoes from the past. Echoes that were still hiding in their depths all of that forbidden and unbidden desire she had for live, for love; the need to explore and to escape from her infinite and utter loneliness.

Echoes that seemed to be a reminder of what he had once told her.

It has been too long and now whenever she looked in the mirror she felt haunted. She could see him in there. It was as if his image had become her reflection.

Once upon a time he had told her that she could be a Queen.

_“You can be a queen Caroline. You can have it all.”_

She didn’t know if she could have it all but she knew that right now she felt as if she had nothing.

He was right. _Time._ Time changed everything. What once mattered now mattered no more. What once felt important now held no value.

She had lived her human dreams until she realized that she didn’t belong to that world and that her dreams reached much higher. Now she wanted everything. She didn’t want to comprise. She had the scars but she now wanted the bleeding wounds too. She wanted the light, the dark, the day, the night. She wanted the sun and the blue but she longed for the moon and the black. And now Klaus’s promise was not an unbidden desire anymore. It was her first thought in the morning and her last thought at night. It had taken possession of her mind; of each waking thought. It had found refuge deep inside to the place that yearned for blood and acceptance and it was consuming her whole.

Once she was afraid of what she would become by Klaus’ side but she had never imagined back then that by staying away from him she would eventually become more and more like him and she would eventually be ready to go to him and to see the world through his eyes.

She knew he was still awaiting for her and he knew she would one day go to him. And the day had finally arrived.

The golden crown he had once offered still had many thorns but the alternative had no roses.


	8. Smut

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Klaroline smut: No plot. Just smut ( (romantic and otherwise and maybe a little bloodlust too).  
> A closer look at the 5x11 scene.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Many thanks to Anastasia Dreams and Klovec for all their help and their editing work!

Caroline lay underneath him on the soft ground of the forest.

She panted, her nails creating paths of blood on his back and Klaus couldn't help but thrust deeper inside her. He wanted to leave no room between them, to suffocate her with his body and his need, to mark her as his. He promised to leave her, to set her free, but this was their moment. This was what he would take with him. _Always and forever._

Her bare breasts crushed against his chest and she threw her head back and screamed his name in ecstasy. A sound nothing less than divine. Her hair, a messy lake of gold and silk in the dirt while her face and neck flashed red from the satisfaction that wracked her body.

As the sun began to set and cast its remaining purplish glow all over their intertwined bodies, she parted her lips breathlessly and he couldn't help but bend over and claim her mouth in a savage kiss. Their tongues swirled in a dance of dominance and submission and he kept his eyes open. He moved faster and faster inside her and she moved against him in the same insane rhythm. Still, he didn't want to close his eyes. He wanted to savor each moment and each picture. He wanted to remember how she looked, as she became a part of him.

All Klaus could think was that she was more beautiful than ever.

The erotic tune they have found themselves dancing to played on repeat. A feeling flowing both ways because one time was not enough.

Dreams couldn't compare with this. Caroline never wanted this moment to end. She had come undone so many times by now, but the heat in her flesh was not extinguished. It raged, hot and wild. His hands were flames that licked her skin. Still, she wanted more. She needed more. A need so demanding and primitive that she felt as if she was going to dissolve into dust at any moment.

His hands were possessive as they moved all over her body. Exploring her. Finding each secret her body held and revealing it slowly to his eyes and touch. She craved him and she had left herself to become completely lost to his strong body. She felt as if her blood rapidly changed into hot molten lava, spreading out of control. All rational thoughts abandoned her as she felt herself clenching all around him. Under her fingertips the muscles of his back tightened with each erratic move he made. His hands palmed her derriere, bringing her impossibly closer and blending their bodies into one shape, her legs tightly wrapped around him. The more he pushed into her, the more she needed to push back, harder and with abandon; He was savage and tender with his touch. His kisses igniting more need within her.

Caroline gasped when Klaus's mouth found her hardened nipple and she abruptly turned them over so she could straddle him. She cried out as he adjusted himself and thrusted deeper inside her without taking his mouth away from her breast.

A whisper, a plea, an ache.

All her words lost as she kept asking for more. She moved against him in a frenzy, with a speed that drove them both wild. His hands on her back as their chests collided. Their foreheads now touching as their gazes locked on each other. Passion and need battling violently in their gaze while both of their sweaty bodies savaged each other.

But, there was more there. There was emotion. There was a feeling that words could not describe. Still buried deep inside her, he slowed his movements. He glided in and out of her, inch by inch, drawing out a pleasure she had never felt before.

She clenched her eyes shut and threw her head back as his lips found their way to her neck. Blood roared hot in her veins and she felt his pointy fangs extending and scraping her skin without tearing it. A new lust stronger than before assaulted her body when she felt his sharp teeth on her skin; it was as if the vampire inside her was coming closer to the surface and was taking control. Without any second thought her hands held his stubbled face and her mouth crushed onto his. Her hands found their way to the back of his head. She wrapped her arms around his neck, clinging on to him, his own hands holding her close as if he was afraid that she was a dream and she would vanish at any moment.

His arms slowly slipped from her back to the sides of her breasts and then to her waist so he could hold her up more finding the right angle to bring her the most pleasure. So much pleasure it brought her to the edge of pain.

She thought she was going to lose her mind as a traitorous voice kept repeating the word _everlasting_ in her head.

As the kiss grew deeper, she felt the dark veins in her eyes appearing. Her fangs attacked his mouth in their kiss and when his blood hit her tongue she knew that she wanted him to taste her. To have all of her. She wanted to smell her own blood and to taste herself on his lips. She wanted to feel the sting of his poison and then to bury her fangs to his flesh and drink him in, have him in her system, in her blood, deep inside. She wanted them to be completely lost in each other for these moments. To be…connected and she couldn't ignore that want no matter how much it terrified her.

She tore her lips from his and looked at him with her vampiric eyes and her heart constricted at the way his eyes shone with admiration and something akin to adoration even. With a trembling hand as she kept riding him she swept her damp hair away from her neck exposing its curve and she saw him gulping and felt him harden impossibly more inside her.

"Caroline," he growled, his eyes turning golden. Flames danced in her bloodstream, her breathing shallow. His eyes bored into hers as if he wanted to make sure that she really wanted this and that made her heartbeat slow down as an unexplained desire crept into her heart. A portmanteau of thirst and yearning. For blood and for him.

"I want you to," she whimpered and cried out as he plunged deeper in a hard thrust that made her lose all control. His hand gripped her hair and tilted her head back. His nose travelled over the pumping vein in her neck, his tongue swirling over the hot spot.

Klaus buried his fangs into her flesh and she screamed, exploding and losing herself in an ecstatic oblivion.

Her blood now ran inside his veins and that made her feel oddly satisfied. Possessive feelings kicked in inside her heart, a new chemical that was causing new reactions in her.

While drinking from her, almost draining her he kept worshipping her body with his hands and she panted wildly as her body rose into another climax. This fueled her desire more and her lips found refuge in his shoulder without tearing his skin. She just pressed her lips hard to his flesh, enjoying the sweet weakness that conquered her body from the blood loss. It was as if she floated on air and Klaus was the one and only thing that kept her grounded to earth.

When his teeth set her neck free, blood flooded out of his mouth. A sight that should have been terrifying to her, but instead of fear she only felt attraction. Primal and unwavering. She leaned forward and darted her tongue so she could lick her blood from his mouth and she heard him growl. His chest heaved and he could barely breathe.

"Bloody hell," he muttered over her lips and she smirked. She loved the power she had over him. It was addicting. And then she saw him looking at her with concern and realized that his bite must have left a festering wound in her neck. One that would soon cause pain and torment, but this time it was different. This time she welcomed the bite and she wanted to feel it again.

Klaus wrapped his one arm around her waist and brought his other hand in front of her mouth and encouraged her to take her fill. She looked intently at him and without averting her eyes she allowed herself to bite him. This time hard and with no hesitation. He didn't flinch but he did gasp and she lowered her body down his cock more and rocked her hips back and forth. His blood entered her mouth and ran hot down her throat. The feeling was so powerful and alluring that she moaned and instinctively brought her own wrist in front of his mouth. He looked at her and bit the flesh gently. A contradiction as she was brutally drinking his blood and curing herself from his bite while he now gently and slowly was relishing in small sips the red essence that run through her veins. As they bloodshared in the very same moment their rhythm became faster and faster. A motion that caused both of their bodies to spasm and convulse. They both came undone and surrendered to their release, quivering with their bones and skin melting together in one sinful blend.

Caroline let go of his wrist and licked her lips. Klaus smiled and slid his thumb over the outline of her jaw. He swept some drops of blood away before he pressed his digit to her lips and she slowly sucked it, not allowing even that drop to go to waste. She closed her eyes and laced her hands around his neck. Her forehead touched his and her eyes locked with the blue of his orbs.

They both felt complete and they both felt the closeness that for the first time was casting away their loneliness and their feelings of abandonment. At this very moment they were not alone. They were together and it felt familiar and comforting.

It was unthinkable for either of them to give up their control and yet they balanced each other. It was impossible to know who had the upper hand and who was submitting to the other. All they felt was that at this moment they both were where they should have been all along.

It was frustrating to imagine than in a few moments all would be over, but for now they would just make the best of the time they had left.

_And so they did._


	9. Underneath all the paint

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> No matter how much paint he would pour over in the end he knew that underneath it all Caroline was still there. Unspoken, never tainted and always so familiar.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Many thanks to Anastasia Dreams for all her help and her editing work!

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.

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Like a madman Klaus Mikaelson kept painting again and again. Over and over. More paint, more colors, more shapes. It was not the war outside his head that was breaking him and bringing him to his knees. It was the need and the voices that didn't seem to stop inside his mind.

… _If you and I are so similar, then show me your compassion…_

Particles of dust dancing inside the dim rays of the sunlight that peeked through the almost closed curtains were the only thing that broke the darkness of his self-enforced prison.

His skin was tainted with paint and his clothes stained with different colored pigments. The canvas was his portal to freedom and his personal expression of all the things he could not control and everything he would not share with the world. Everything locked inside the recesses of his mind screamed and fought him, louder than life's clamor and roaring more than death's silence.

… _Just to be clear, I'm too smart to be seduced by you…_

Shades of green, of yellow and of white. Shades that created light and beauty.

… _.No… It's because you're hurt… Which means that there is a part of you that is human… Because I've seen it. Because I've caught myself wishing that I could forget all the horrible things that you've done…._

With steady movements he spread the paint over the canvas with his brush. With each slow and careful stroke a new form was emerging.

A new dream, a new design, a new piece of art that was not that new for him and yet it was not old either.

It was just there…simply always there…

Blond hair like a golden fiery halo surrounded the beautiful face that had come to life by his hands.

… _I get it… Your father didn't love you, so you assume that no one else will either. And that's why you compel people or you sire them or you try to buy them off…But that's not how it works… You don't connect with people, because you don't even try to understand them…_

A bright smile was now formed unlike the scoffing grimaces she always seemed to throw at him.

Beautiful blue eyes stared him back and seemed to pierce the surface, break the ice and burn the soul. However, he could not exactly replicate the same defiance and indignation of her gaze.. He could not forge the same energy and life her eyes emitted every time she was angry or passionate about something. He was always hoping though that something included him.

… _Thank you…_

He took a step back and admired the creature he had drawn. The outlines and the colors seemed to match, but it was not perfect.

It wasn't doing any justice to the real model but it was the closest he could get to capturing her beauty into the confines of the paint and snatching her grace from his imagination to lock to his canvas.

… _I know that you're in love with me…and anybody capable of love is capable of being saved…_

Caroline was staring him back. Her form so clearly depicted in the portrait.

He took a cloth and wiped his hands and he smiled faintly at the feminine smile that he had crafted in the painting. Perfection was staring him back. Ivory skin, blonde messy hair, red lips, bright eyes. If only her drawing could come to life. If only the paint was flesh and bone and the smile not just lines of oil and paint.

Somehow her absence was not making him give up on her. The conquest was not conquered. If anything it was turning more into an obsession than ever before. He seemed to be stumbling in his memories of her. He was still learning to exist in her absence, which made no sense because for a thousand years he had lived without any trace of Caroline Forbes in his life and in the end it only took a few months for her to become an irreplaceable part of him.

He was ready to swallow his pride, to crawl and go back to her, but he only managed to say goodbye and let her go because that is what she had wanted; he could not get to her, he could not follow her and he could not stay in her life simply because caring for her meant freeing her.

… _yes, I cover our connection with hostility because, yes, I hate myself for the truth…_

She was not ready for him. That much he understood but that didn't seem to ease his mind or to make this whole situation any easier.

There were days and nights that led him to the same restless desire. To the same dead ends and the same painted dreams. He wanted to break through the walls she had raised between them and get to her. Make her his for all eternity and never let her go.

The spark that existed between them was not part of his imagination or an unfulfilled craving anymore. Now, both of them knew.

In all honesty, he didn't need that much. Just a nod and he would bring the world and offer it at her feet.

He knew that Caroline wanted the flame but she was not ready to burn yet. She first had to let go of her human attachments and her curiosity for the unknown. She had to let go of her childish dreams before she was ready to embrace her true nature and along with that him also.

And yet he could not simply erase her from his life. It was not that easy. Not possible. He had spent a thousand years trying to break his curse. He would wait more if he had to in order to win her over but it was the hardest thing he ever had to do. It was a never ending battle. One that gained him days of solitude and it seemed futile but made every day more tolerable because he was erasing the days that were distancing him from her. Somehow he knew that one day she would be by his side. So he kept fighting for her even if that meant letting her go for now. Because fighting for what you believe in and for your dreams is the only way to truly live. And this was exactly what Caroline was for him.

He spared another glance to her painting and as always with a sigh he splashed white paint all over it. The paint pouring slowly. Rivulets of whiteness flooded her shades that brought color to his life.

Then as always black followed.

He covered her with the absence of color. He turned her into black and her smile turned into blankness.

However, no matter how much paint he would pour over her in the end he knew that just underneath it all Caroline was still there.

Unspoken, untainted but so very familiar. Just underneath the surface, underneath all that paint. She was there in his every waking thought. In his every notion, in his every instinct.

He looked around and looked at his paintings. Every each one had different patterns and designs. Some abstract, while some conveyed darkness, anger and loneliness. However underneath every each one of them her phantom lurked. He was first drawing her and then on top of her anything else because this is how he felt. He was carrying her inside him as his painting were holding her captive under all their paint.

No matter how much distance he would put between them in the end he would always keep her inside.

Underneath it all…hidden… but always there.

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	10. More than Enough

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When it all became too much, when the spark of black in him that had lured her in turned into a tide wave of scarlet emotion that stirred up the beast inside of her, Caroline ran away. But she knew that Klaus would to follow her even to the ends of the earth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Many thanks to my lovely beta Klovec (from ff.net site)

She had run.

When it all became too much, when the spark of black in him that had lured her in turned into a tide wave of scarlet emotion that stirred up the beast inside of her, she ran away.

She waited for the opportune moment and sneaked out of his arms while he was asleep or pretended to be sleeping.

She wouldn't be Caroline if she didn't leave and he wouldn't be Klaus if he didn't follow her to the ends of the earth.

She spent the next days putting distance between them and yet she could always feel his presence near her. She chose to ignore the nagging feeling of being stalked while she continued to run until she had purposely made the fatal mistake that lured him out of the shadows.

She wanted to test her limits. She also wanted to make sure that it was not her wild imagination sending her all those warning signals.

Caroline went into a shady bar got drunk and flirted. She seduced a man into following her to the alley behind the bar and sunk her teeth into his flesh, drinking from his neck after she compelled him to enjoy how she fed from him.

She then suppressed a shudder when his erection pressed against her and forced her body to grind over it. She dragged her heeled foot over his leg and pulled him closer. The man moaned and she forced herself to relax.

She was not a nun. Just because a psychotic Original was hot on her tail, she would not shut herself and her desires off. Most definitely not, because of all her traitorous memories were tainted from the need and longing she felt for the man she had to run away from.

However, just as she was about to cross the line — close her eyes and pretend that her little snack had dirty blond hair, a wicked smirk and British accent to die for — and have a one night stand with him before compelling him to forget and move along to other adventures, she heard the man's bones breaking. A quick sharp snap and the body she was holding fell to the ground in front of her legs.

Blood and decay lay at her feet while she closed her eyes and stood back. She then felt two possessive hands on her waist and before she could even utter a protest she was swept away into a darker and more isolated alley far away from the noise of the buzzing city.

Caroline took in the familiar scent and slowly opened her eyes. His hands were not holding her anymore. She staggered back, fear and anticipation enveloping her while his face was hidden in the dark.

She saw the shadows rising and his figure appeared slowly amongst the dim light that defined the darkness of the alley before his features could be defined in her vision.

"I wouldn't run if I were you," he warned her.

He was coming closer. A predatory aura surrounded him but then Klaus was always formidable that way.

Caroline let out a shuddering breath but soon enough she straightened her back. Her hair framed her face in waves as she defiantly raised her chin and looked straight at him.

"Why? Will you hunt me down if I do?" she challenged him, her whole body language poised to indicate that she was not afraid of him. Which was quite ironic since just days before she ran away from him without daring to face him first. Maybe it was because she knew that if she had faced him, she wouldn't have been able to leave. Not because he would stop her, but because she would stop herself.

But now that they were facing each other she would not cower in front of him nor she would allow him to intimidate her.

_Her_ fearing _him_ was never part of what they had. They were complicated, strange, complex. What they had was so Daedalean and convoluted that the labyrinthine of their emotion was so tangled and puzzling that always left them… _left her_ …in awe. In a daze and in bewilderment.

He smiled and the lines of his face were now soft and familiar. She was perplexed by his reaction. She ran away from him once she had finally given in to him. He came after her as she expected but she also expected to be confronted by the angry volatile version of him. Not by this tortuous tender expression that made thousand butterfly wings flutter in the pits of her stomach.

"No. I won't…I wouldn't do that to you," he confessed and she held her breath at the way his honesty lingered between them. He came closer trapping her between his body and the stone wall of the alley. His body, looming over hers, created thrilling shivers that ran throughout her whole body.

His thumb found its way to her lip and glided over the drop of blood that still loitered on her skin. Her tongue darted out and licked the last essence of the thick crimson liquid and the edge of his fingertip. His gaze darkened and amber momentarily colored the blue shade of his orbs.

Unexpectedly his hand reached for her hair and tucked a stray golden lock behind her ear. Caroline blushed and mentally scolded herself for recalling all the steamy moments they had shared just a few days ago. Yet, this touch felt more personal and was creating an ache in her heart. Her eyes grew wider and vulnerability filled her when his hands framed her face. Those same hands snapped the neck of a man just moments before. Now those hands were not calling death to come but creating electrifying energy to erupt from her skin pores.

"If you want to run now, if you are so scared of what we have that running away feels like the only option for you, then… I will let you go," he promised her, the cadence of his voice a husky tempting tone. She could see up close and personal how much he struggled and how hard this was on him. This was new for him, not taking what he wanted by force. Instead, he was giving her a choice that could actually hurt him.

He was transcending his own limits and that finally made her see clearly what she refused to accept when she chose to hide behind her hostility and her animosity for him instead of facing what she actually felt.

"You will always have a choice," he vowed and pressured her more to the wall "you will always be free but if you run you… _won't have me_. Worst. You won't have _us_ or the chance to be who you are when you are by my side… So choose carefully sweetheart."

His warning echoed all around and he waited for her answer, his eyes never leaving hers. He followed her in order to give her a choice and to give them a chance. Maybe she was afraid of who she was becoming when she was by his side but she also knew that the woman she was meant to be would conquer her fears and would embrace her true nature. That was what Klaus offered.

Her body sagged against the wall but her blood started racing faster and faster in her veins. He was pushing her beyond her limits.

"What will it be Caroline?" he insisted with building hope that he wasn't even trying to hide from her. She looked at his lips. She wanted to feel them on her skin again. To caress them with her mouth and tongue.

"I want to run," Caroline muttered and Klaus sighed in defeat. With a pained expression he let go of her face as if it burned him and took a step back. Before he could take another step away from her she reached for his hand and interlaced her fingers with his.

" _With you,_ " she whispered her confession, smiling when she saw the big boyish grin forming on his lips.

Caroline's hand wrapped around his neck and brought him closer to her.

Nothing else mattered now. Just him and her there against the wall. Slow or fast, rough or not it didn't matter. All she wanted to was to feel him.

She finally tested his lips again. She didn't know what this was going to get her, but she gave in once more. She let go of her doubts. Even though she didn't know if this was the right thing to do or if she was even thinking clearly; she just knew one thing. Caroline knew that this was where she wanted to be.

Klaus was the only thing she wanted to touch. He was the flame that set her soul alight; he was bringing her to life and casting the death that surrounded her vampire life away.

He was bringing her to the edge and he was setting her heart afire.

For an immortal that meant to finally be able to breathe in an endless stale existence and for now that was enough. No matter what she feared and no matter what tomorrow would bring for now this was enough.

And maybe that was more than enough.


	11. Butterfly Wings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Don't you know what happens to a moth when it gets close to the flame, sweetheart?"  
> One flutter of those wings he so much craved to see on her and not only them, but the whole world would burn. [Post episode 2x22 / Dark AU : Klaus makes one more stop before leaving Mystic Falls with Stefan and takes Caroline along for the ride.]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Many thanks to my lovely beta Klovec (from ff.net site)

There was no mercy in those eyes. It seemed as if hell had frozen inside of them. Those little glimpses of humanity that occasionally slipped through the cracks of his cruelty were not enough to save her.

Those moments would come and go like a weak ray of light inside the center of a storm. The ray would be almost immediately devoured by the darkness and the stillness inside of the eye of the storm. It would only bring destruction to wherever the storm would land.

And yet those merciless eyes tempted her more than anything else. Even she didn't know how she kept control over herself.

Stefan was gone. He had given in to his darkest desires and all she could do was close her eyes and pretend she was somewhere else.

Somewhere where the devil wasn't inviting her to dance with him. Somewhere where the scent of blood wasn't filling her nostrils tempting the vampire inside of her to come out and play.

Caroline shivered and hugged her knees as she pushed herself more against the wall. She looked at Klaus with pleading eyes but he would not relent. He would never relent.

He could compel her. She knew that he could but he hadn't so far. What he did was far worse. He was giving her just enough blood to keep her from desiccating but not enough to quench the hunger she was feeling.

She was weak, restless and oh so very hungry. He told her that she was free to feed to any of the victims he and Stefan would bring along after their nights or terror and debauchery. With her hunger she knew that if she was to do that she wouldn't be able to stop. She also knew that this was what he wanted. To make her kill, to make her rip people apart like he and Stefan were doing.

They were on the road for months. Chasing down leads and searching for werewolf packs. That didn't stop Klaus from indulging into endless nights of murder and torture. The insane glint of his gaze would be sated only after he had his fair share of pain and blood. She suspected that this was his only way of filling the endless void inside of him. The same that existed inside Stefan too. One that was inside Damon also. One that Caroline hoped would never exist inside her.

And each and every night Klaus would ask her to join him. He even made Stefan ask her.

She would kindly decline their offer every night. In the end she was left starving as more corpses kept piling up.

Klaus at first seemed to enjoy her resistance. These days, however, he seemed frustrated by her resilience. Stefan looked at her hopelessly but no matter how far gone he was, she could still detect some specks of admiration for her stance; in his eyes that gave her hope. Hope that Stefan could return to the friend and mentor that taught her how to control the vampire inside her. Caroline hoped that she could still hold on that control.

Even if it seemed as if she was postponing the inevitable.

She was now shaking. She felt feverish and the whole room was spinning out of control.

Klaus' face was hidden behind the red hair of the girl he was holding on his lap.

Stefan had already taken last night's corpses outside to burn them.

Klaus would always leave the dead bodies to rot. To remind her of the death he wanted her to cause and how her refusal to drink from the humans he was bringing for her ended with he and Stefan causing more pain to those people. More pain that she could ever imagine.

The girl on Klaus' knees had already stopped struggling. She was now moaning in pain, one step away from fainting on his arms.

When Klaus raised his face from her neck blood smeared all over his chin. His eyes glinted with amber as it dripped from his elongated fangs.

He deviously smirked and licked the excess of blood from around his lips with the tip of his tongue before he ran the velvet side of it over his fangs.

Caroline almost moaned at that and Klaus smiled at her. She growled but refused to move.

"Care to join me love?" he asked her as he did every single time.

"No thank you… I am good," Caroline whispered and closed her eyes while counting backwards from ten in order to reign over her hunger.

Klaus sighed and unceremoniously dropped the half dead girl on the floor.

He got up from the sofa and with slow steps he approached Caroline. She clenched her eyes shut as hard as she could. He smelled like blood and her whole body 5vibrated with the need to feed.

Klaus crouched down in front of her, grabbed her by her arms and pushed her deep into his embrace.

Caroline's eyes snapped open and she trembled when Klaus started caressing her hair.

The blood from his hands painted her golden locks scarlet. She wanted to shove him away but somehow she felt warm and comfortable in his arms. She should be horrified but his hug brought her the illusion of safety and of closeness she's been missing.

She missed her friends, her mom, her every day ordinary life and now Klaus was hugging her close to his undead heart.

She rested her hands over his chest and didn't even breathe. She allowed her body to relax next to his and she felt him smelling her hair.

"You have so much potential and yet you are still holding back," Klaus whispered and Caroline gulped.

He kept caressing her hair for some a while, lulling her to a false sense of security before he placed one hand behind her back and the other under her knees.

He effortlessly picked her up and sat her next to him to the sofa. The girl that Klaus fed from was not in front of them. She was meekly crawling on the floor in a desperate effort to get away.

Caroline tensed and tried to move but Klaus kept her trapped in his arms. She was too weak to fight and even if she wasn't she knew that her strength could not compare with his.

"New born vampires are actually a rare occasion. One as young as you, ready to be molded into perfection," he murmured, tiltingCaroline's head up in order to meet her gaze.

"Stefan is the perfect ripper but you can be the perfect vampire. You can have the world sweetheart and I would like you to teach you exactly how you can do that," Klaus tempted her.

He kept his hand wrapped around her waist holding her still by his side and his other grabbed the redheaded girl by the hair and violently shoved her wounded body in front of Caroline.

He pushed the head of the girl back, exposing her bleeding neck to an extremely famished Caroline.

Caroline's eyes changed. Blackish veins appeared and blood danced underneath her eyelids.

Klaus smirked and before Caroline could react he pressed his lips over hers.

His lips still had the girl's blood on them.

Caroline's fangs descended and she gave in to his kiss with a feral moan. She was so bloodthirsty that his lips felt like heaven. She even bit him and she enjoyed the way he tasted and how his body softened under her assault.

They kept kissing and biting each other. A kiss that all fangs and blood with the body of the bleeding girl between them.

Klaus wrapped his hand around the tangled mess that was Caroline's bloody hair and pushed her head back viciously. She was ferocious now and her jaws kept opening and snapping close as she tried to bite him again and again. Her control was slipping away.

Klaus chuckled and his other hand dipped to the neck wound of the girl next to them before he smeared the human blood over Caroline's face igniting her hunger even more.

Caroline hissed at that and licked the blood from around her lips before she turned around and saw the girl's eyes looking at her with absolute terror. The dying girl was now crying silently and no matter how hungry Caroline was the sight shook her to her core. She screamed and forced her face to change back to human.

"Let go of me!" she yelled at Klaus and he closed his eyes in defeat.

"So stubborn," he complained tiredly.

One more night. Once more his victory over her would have to be postponed.

"Your humanity is killing you. Give it a rest vampire," Klaus said with as sigh before shaking Caroline's shoulders, jarring her whole body forcibly.

This time Caroline looked straight at his eyes.

"Go to hell!" she screeched and Klaus smiled at her defiance. He let her go and Caroline fell to the floor. She hurriedly pushed herself away from him and most of all away from the temptation of the girl's blood.

Klaus rolled his eyes and swiftly snapped the girl's neck. Caroline refused to look at him. Instead her eyes remained on the dead girl on the floor.

"I might leave you with her for more than 24 hours this time," Klaus nonchalantly said as he wiped his bloody hands on the dead girl's hair.

"The smell of a decaying corpse has a way of messing with one's head I've heard. Especially one that is so inexperienced when it comes to death as you are, love," Klaus commented and rolled the sleeves of his black shirt down.

Caroline didn't answer. She pressed her lips and looked at him, her gaze full of hatred.

Klaus seemed to enjoy her anger.

"You know Elijah was prone to metaphors. Every time he wanted to say something he would use all these boring parables and metaphors…I should have daggered him a long time ago I swear," Klaus said with a shrug as he went to the table and poured himself a drink.

He gulped down the scotch and looked at Caroline who was still famished on the floor.

"However, if _I_ were to use a metaphor I would say that you are similar to a caterpillar sweetheart," Klaus said as he pointed his tumbler at her.

He let go of his glass and came near to her again. He kneeled down and sat next to her as if they were two old friends that were simply enjoying each other's company.

"Once you become a butterfly you will be magnificent," Klaus promised at her and she scoffed.

"You know shed your human skin and transform into the vampire you are meant to be," Klaus told her while his finger glided over the length of her arm.

Caroline grimaced but didn't move.

"And then what? Don't you fear what will happen next?" she asked him. He raised an elegant questioning eyebrow at her.

"What do you think would happen?" Klaus asked her, his eyes scanning her with interest.

Caroline turned around and this time her tired gaze was vibrant and full of challenge as she looked straight into his eyes.

"Butterflies often spread their wings and fly away. If I become what you want me to be, what is it to stop me from flying away from _you_?" she threatened. It made Klaus smirk.

"You," he simply said.

Caroline squint her eyes at him.

"You will be drown to me," he told her and Caroline rolled her eyes in disbelief.

Klaus grasped her hand and brought her closer to him. Her face was now just inches away from his.

"You do know what happens to a moth when it gets close to the flame, sweetheart, don't you?" Klaus provoked her and Caroline looked at him with a gaze full of undiluted rage.

A rage that was building up to a blinding fury and she shoved him away.

Klaus let her.

"But before you and I get burned first you will need to embrace your nature. Don't be shy, sweetheart. Give in," Klaus tempted her and this time Caroline ran her tongue around the blood that was still lingering on the corner of her lip.

"Maybe I am ready to," she whispered and Klaus raised his eyebrow at her tone.

"But on my terms," she demanded before she wrapped her hand around the nape of his neck and in a flash she had sunk her teeth to his jugular.

The sounds that left both of their mouths were inhuman.

Klaus would have killed any vampire who would dare such an offense. He had never allowed another to drink from him. To use him and his blood but there was something about this girl that made him surrender.

He laid them both down to the floor pulling her over his body, allowing her full access to his neck. She was finally giving in to her hunger even if she was feeding on him. That was a start. One he planned to take full advantage off.

He leaned back his head, closed his eyes and moaned at all the sensations her bite was bringing him. She was savagely biting him, gulping down his blood. _On her terms_ and he didn't mind.

He let her feed, take all of him in. He enjoyed the thought that his blood now ran inside her veins, nourishing her.

She was ruthless and vicious and he kept stroking her back and hair, encouraging her to take more.

This was more than personal. It felt intimate and he didn't know if she was claiming his blood or he was claiming her.

One thing he knew for certain was that even though he had originally brought her along as a pet to keep him entertained and Stefan under his control, now the terms had changed. His little plaything became something more.

He wanted her. He was going to keep her.

One thing that he could have never calculated was that there was one more thing that butterflies could do once they gained their glorious wings.

They could flutter them and chaos would follow. Like a domino that swept everything in its passage.

Love, hate, light, darkness, all would be gone once the monster would know its power and would be set free.

One simple flap of those wings he so much craved to see on her and not only them, but the whole world would burn.


	12. You are never too old to have nightmares

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maybe Mufasa's death was more traumatizing than you thought!" Klaus keeps having reccurring nightmares, Caroline loses her sleep and Rebekah mourns for Winnie The Pooh. [AU Parody]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * Many thanks to my lovely beta Klovec (from ff.net site)
> 
> * This drabble is not friendly towards the TVD spin off (The Originals) and its characters
> 
> * Crack. Parody.

Klaus woke up with a gasp. His fangs extended, his eyes glimmered gold.

He snarled, cringing while his whole body vibrated with disgust.

Caroline snuggled closer into his arms. It took a while because of her stubbornness but after fifteen centuries, three decades, six years, eight months, and thirteen hours, she accepted his invitation to take her to Paris for brunch so he would stop stalking her. After that, plus several arguments and hot hook ups, they eventually came closer and the rest was history.

Now he would not even allow her to sleep away from him. Their nights were filled with lust and passion.

Every night except the last few nights and tonight, that is.

Caroline's body had become an extension of his over their shared decades. Her senses were tuned in to his and that was why she felt the waves of his discomfort attacking her as well; sleep evaded her.

She blinked noticing how his eyes illuminated the darkness with their amber glow. Immediately she stilled, focused on her surroundings trying to detect any signs of danger.

She moved slowly and tilted her head up until she hid it in the crook of his neck.

"What is going on?" she whispered in his ear low enough so only he could hear her. She was ready to pounce and to face any attack.

"There was a..a... _baby_ ," he uttered the word with sheer terror as if it was a curse.

Confused, Caroline raised her head and looked at him..

"And there was a lot of crying...oh the crying!" he mumbled and Caroline rolled her eyes.

"Not again," she groused and fell back to her own pillow.

"This must be a spell!" he growled and Caroline snorted.

This recurring nightmare of his started ever since Rebekah decided to force him to watch with her all the 20th century Disney animated movies she had in her collection.

Caroline never expected from Klaus to give in to his sister's whims but according to Rebekah he still had a lot of things to hide.

All it took was Rebekah to make a reference to the year 1390 and Notre Dame. After that Klaus mumbled something about daggered siblings make the best siblings and started watching Rebekah's old movies with her. He looked as if he would rather resurrect Mikael than spent another more minute watching Bambi.

"Go back to sleep Klaus," Caroline said to him and turned on her side.

"This cannot be a coincidence! You can't even imagine the decadence! The horror!" Klaus dramatically protested and sat up. He pushed back his sweaty hair.

He hid his face in his trembling palms ranting about how he needed a good bloodbath in order to cleanse away the horror.

"Yeah yeah, New Orleans, babies, diapers, crying, I get it. Although you shouldn't object so much to the psychiatrist idea," she mocked him and she bit the inside of her cheek when she heard him swearing in ancient Norse.

"I impregnated the she wolf for the love of Gods! On the table Kol had stolen from the palace of Versailles! I almost even dropped her on it! On my French antique table! Why would I even put her there in the first place? I would never mistreat such a selective piece and it was already an antique back then in Mystic Falls," he complained and Caroline didn't know if she was amused or extremely annoyed, anymore.

The man she was with for years having x-rated dreams about a werewolf enemy of theirs, that gruesomely bit the dust more than a millennia and a half ago by his own hands, was just not her cup of tea!

"Yeah sex with Hayley would constitute a nightmare. Can we please go back to sleep now?" she threw back at him.

She needed to tell to Rebekah to stop messing with Klaus like this. And also learn what actually happened in 1390 in Notre Dame.

"There were Queens of the quagmires, substitutes of you, lowlifes, swamps and lullabies!" Klaus cringed and Caroline couldn't help stop herself from giggling. His grimace was priceless.

"This is not funny!" Klaus yelled at her and Caroline bit her bottom lip. She turned her head around to see him and he was looking at her with lethal intent. The kind of gaze that would sent anyone in Klaus premises running away screaming in terror but it only made Caroline laugh instead.

"It is a bit," she chuckled and raised her hands in mock defeat when Klaus took the lamp from the nightstand next to him and threw it to wall.

Caroline rolled her eyes at his temper. After their first two decades together, she kept the expensive lamps on her nightstand.

Caroline extended her hand and caressed his bare chest gently trying to soothe him. Her fingers finding their way to his necklaces and she pulled them until Klaus bent over. His face now close to hers.

"Maybe Mufasa's death was more traumatizing than you thought!" she confessed conspiratorially and he pushed her away immediately with disgust. She bit her pillow in order to stop her laughter.

"There must be some witches behind these nightmares! I was a whimpering mess! I kept on weeping and babbling!" he hissed.

"Like you do now?" she provoked him with a voice full of mirth and irony.

"I cowered in front of incompetent simpletons!" he yelled at her obviously offended and traumatized.

Caroline huffed and pushed the sheet away from her. She pulled her negligee up over her thighs and straddled him. Klaus eyed her up and down and looked surprised by the change in her behavior. Before he could say anything Caroline kissed him hard until he responded.

Klaus pulled her closer to him, his hands pushing the straps of her nightgown away from her shoulders.

Well, Caroline thought, if that was the only way to shut him up so be it. He had managed to wake her up completely anyway.

Just when she was getting really turned on between his kisses and the way he was playing with her body, Klaus pushed her away and looked at her panicked.

"Maybe we should use protection!" he told her terrified, his eyes pleading and full of inconceivable fear.

"Ugh!" she groaned.

"Just to be safe love!" he winced at the idea of having his sperm resurrected after all these centuries. Nature would never be so cruel to him, would it?

"Seriously?" Caroline yelled at him and smacked his shoulder. This was getting too absurd even for her! She tried to kiss him again and she grinded her body over his erection and Klaus seemed to relax for a moment but then sighed on her mouth.

"At least let me have a baby for breakfast! That is not too much to ask!" he complained as he kissed her and Caroline pushed herself away. She huffed and shook her head. Aside from thousands of mortals, Klaus could also really kill her sex mood when he wanted.

Babies for breakfast?

She still remembered how she had stopped him as he was about to skin a stray puppy Rebekah had brought with her at their home in Rome a couple of decades ago. At least she had saved the poor thing in time.

The same cannot be said for Rebekah's last boyfriend.

Klaus had given to his sister a beautiful new leather coat made of her fallen lover's skin for her 2,578th birthday.

And he only told Rebekah after she herself wore it and _smelt the truth_ in the leather's scent. That turned into a memorable birthday party indeed.

Although Caroline had to admit that the design of the coat was pretty great. Rebekah actually made a replica of it some weeks after the event.

Caroline would not normally worry that much for Klaus's nightmare induced somewhat feeble threats but one of their neighbors had a baby recently!

And mind you Caroline still was a person that liked to socialize with the people that surrounded her. There was a reason why people liked her and not Klaus. And Klaus killing their acquaintances' offspring kinda explained why he had no friends.

"What?" Klaus innocently asked her and she threw her pillow at him without dignifying him with an answer.

Klaus got up as if electric currents hit him and put on his pants.

"Where are you going now?" Caroline asked, frustrated.

"To call Elijah," Klaus said making Caroline frown.

"Why?" she inquired knowing very well that Elijah was on the other side of the world right now and could not be bothered with Klaus's bad dreams anyway. Not when he was trying to change a whole country's regime and their vampire laws from the inside.

"He has connections I need," Klaus told her.

"And what exactly is it that you need at 3 o'clock in the morning?" she objected with an incredulous look.

"An exorcist!" he proclaimed and left the room in a hurry leaving Caroline alone in their king sized bed.

She started laughing as she made herself comfortable on his side.

Klaus a father? Of a magical Jesus baby?

She couldn't stop the uncontrollable fits of laughter that wracked her body at the idea Once She heard Klaus smashing their Chinese vase collection on the living room —thankfully she had kept the authentic one in their safety deposit box— she started the countdown.

" _One…two…_. _two and a half_ …"

And as always at the count of three Rebekah's shrill voice echoed in the mansion. Caroline was sure that all of Belgium could hear her.

"Bloody hell Nik! What are you doing?"

There was another smashing sound and Klaus's yelling reached Caroline's ears.

"This is all your fault! You are lucky Caroline hid the daggers!" Klaus threatened Rebekah. Caroline heard shuffling sounds and more things breaking.

"Do not touch my DVDs, you wanker!" Rebekah screeched and Caroline put her hand over her mouth to control her laughter. And truth be told those DVDs and movies were collectibles. DVDs didn't even exist anymore.

Caroline heard more crushing sounds and glass breaking. Obviously, Rebekah was retaliating.

"Don't you dare! No! Not Winnie The Pooh!"


	13. Be Kind, Aim for my Heart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As the King's Musketeer, Klaus Mikaelson took an oath to lay his life down for the Crown if needed be. His musket always aimed for the head. She aimed for the heart without using a bullet. For no one knew he had willingly given his soul to the Queen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * Many thanks to Klovec ((from ff.net site) and Anastasia Dreams for helping me edit this drabble.
> 
> *Inspired by Queen Anne and Aramis from the Musketeers series (2015) and by Queen mother Anne and D'Artagnan from the movie "The Man in the Iron Mask".
> 
> *Since this fiction is hinting a certain historical period with real historical figures I have refrained from mentioning the country and the names of the Kings. However there are clues that are pointing to which country and royal family I am referring to.

_._

_._

_._

**_14 May 1643_ **

_._

_._

_._

_._

_The King is dead. Long live the King._

_May the Queen Regent reign in peace until her son comes of age._

* * *

_._

_._

**_7 June 1654_ **

.

.

The golden and silver bells chimed.

Inside and outside the capital's Cathedral thousands of people awaited for their Prince to take the oath and receive the scepters and the crown.

Outside the majestic church thousands of people happily cheered while those that stood inside the walls of the Cathedral, silently and reverently watched their monarch's coronation.

The Royal Guard, dressed in their formal clothing for the occasion, lined up in front of the crowd as the Cardinal placed the crown on the top of the former Prince's head thus giving the nation its new King.

The Queen mother, that for years after her husband's death has been the sole regent of the country, watched her son with pride; the natural light radiating in from the stained glass windows cast its glow on her still blonde hair under her thin head covering veil made of lace and silver threads. Without turning her head around she felt the scorching familiar gaze that still burned holes in her heart, piercing the back of her crowned head.

She inhaled deeply and balanced herself on her satin soft shoes underneath the wide skirt of her extravagant gown. It was not the subtle, non-overpowering smell of the incense in the air that made her dizzy.

Memories assaulted her and she focused for a moment on the light smoke that rose from the lit candles. So different from the black threatening smoke that filled the air more than two decades ago in this very same spot where the musketeer watching her right now with his intent gaze, was standing.

Her mind traveled twenty five years into the past and she could still feel the shroud of smoke from the bombs rising and the deafening bullet explosions.

" _Protect his majesty the King!" "Protect the King!"_

That was the one and only phrase louder than the sounds of the firing muskets but only one man protected the Queen.

A ghost of a smile appeared on her lips and no one saw her head turn for a moment, her green eyes locking with a set of blue ones. Eyes that always followed her everywhere she went.

Queen Caroline exchanged a knowing gaze with one of the eldest musketeers attending the ceremony. She looked at him with a need that still burned deep but could never be spoken by her lips. Turning, her head back to her son, she knew that Niklaus Mikaelson was sharing the same pride for her son and untold passion for her.

Klaus Mikaelson was indeed feeling those emotions. They were flowing in his blood like acid that forever burned his insides. He stood tall and watched the coronation from the first line of the guard next to his brother, the captain of the Musketeers. Klaus, himself, was the biggest authority after Elijah these days. An honor he had accepted in order to always be close to the Queen.

For the occasion he wore his formal blue cloak-like riding cassock, lined with red and edged with silver embroidery. Under the cape, he was dressed in black leather that covered his crisp white linen shirt. But underneath it all, hidden, was the one thing he cherished the most. The only item he always kept close to his heart and prevented him from feeling bare in the eyes of God and men.

The golden cross that hung from the worn out leather cord around his neck.

He placed his gloved hand on his chest and the gold beneath the shirt touched his skin.

As if she felt it herself, Queen Caroline touched the bodice of her dress with her delicate hand and turned around to watch him for just an instant with one of her sweetest smiles.

And he smiled back at her.

She gripped the golden cross with the pearls she was wearing and he felt his cross burn his flesh.

Klaus could not explain it. It was as if they were psychically linked. A bond he had been unable to shake off no matter how hard he had tried.

He tried to still his heart as he stood unmoving, watching with pride as the Prince he loved with all his soul, from the instant he first took breath, was now crowned as his King. He watched with adoration the woman he longed for decades stand by her son's side with a smile of joy and pride.

Soon enough all the Musketeers, old and new, knelt down in honor of their new King.

Soon all members of the guard, him included, would give their oath of servitude to the new monarch.

To serve and protect him. Forever and always. To live and die for him and him alone.

It was the same oath that twenty five years ago had been the reason why Klaus Mikaelson defended the old King, in the very same Cathedral that today a new King was crowned.

However, that day, all of his instincts drove him to another direction. Twenty five years ago, against his oath, he hadn't protected his King.

He had protected the Queen.

Klaus remembered that day clearly. It was the day he held her close for the first time.

The day his fate was sealed inside the color of her eyes.

* * *

_._

_._

**_Twenty five years ago_ **

.

.

It all happened fast. Screams of panic and loud noises reached his ears and he immediately turned his head towards the King and the Queen. The sound of the firing muskets and one of the bullets that pierced the air and aimed for the Queen's heart, turned Klaus' blood to ice and his body into her shield.

The people in the cathedral ran panicked in every direction possible, screaming while the Crown's enemies were shooting at the King and the Queen.

Klaus' instincts went into overdrive and his only thought was to protect his Queen. It was only her smile he could see. The sparkle in her eyes could not be extinguished. Not like this. Not here. Not with him around. He jumped over her throwing her to the ground with his body shielding her.

"Protect the King!" the Musketeers yelled as the troops gathered around the King pushing him behind their armed bodies. The Musketeers held their guns at hand and took their swords out of their sheaths, ready to die for their King.

The Cardinal hid behind his own personal guard but no one but Klaus seemed to care for the Queen.

Everyone was yelling and shouting around them but Klaus only cared for one thing, the scared woman he had trapped underneath his body as bullets rained all around them.

Her pliant, fragile body was secured underneath him while his hands lifted and wrapped around her head. He lowered his own head in order to completely cover her and hide her under him. His fingers buried themselves inside the disheveled golden threads of her hair, her crown pushed aside while Klaus brought the Queen closer to his armored chest.

Lady Caroline breathed in fear as she hid her head in the crook of his neck. His cape was wrapped around both of their entangled bodies on the marble floor of the cathedral. The chandelier above cast down glows of light over them as Klaus's hands held her closer than ever. The sound of the bombs and the bullets along with the smell of the smoke and of the candles were enough to drive the Queen crazy with fear, but she felt oddly safe underneath the musketeer she usually watched from afar while he trained in the court. And now he was holding her. Keeping her safe. She closed her eyes and sighed. And she prayed.

She should be praying for her King's life but instead she was praying for her own and for the man that was now shielding her from harm.

Underneath the silk of her royal dress and the crown jewels on top of her corset, Klaus could feel the terrified fluttering of her heart. Her shallow breathing warming his neck.

He felt a burning ache in his upper arm. The bullet that was aimed for her heart was now lodged inside his bleeding arm.

The noise around them dissipated somewhat until the only thing Klaus could hear was Caroline's erratic breathing and nothing else.

He kept his one hand wrapped protectively around the nape of her neck and moved his other hand and took out his musket, just in case, as he tilted his head up and looked around carefully.

The rest of the musketeers were moving towards the back exit of the church along with the King; the priests were closing the gates of the Cathedral.

Many men were already lying dead on the ground.

Some soldiers of the Royal guard were coming their way as Klaus slowly pushed his body up. He winced at the pain he felt in his shoulder but gritted his teeth and wrapped his arm around the Queen's slender waist and moved both of them behind the half destroyed pews. His eyes widened when instinctively Caroline snuggled closer and found refuge in his embrace; her delicate fingers gripping his shirt. She rested her head in his shoulder and pushed her body against his as if it was the only place where she belonged.

Klaus held her tighter to him and she looked into his eyes.

The commotion soon ended and Klaus realized that it would be better if he was to get the Queen to a secure place. Fast.

He tried to move but Lady Caroline… _his Queen_ … stood still. He breathed in the scent of her hair and he felt lost in it. Maybe it was the loss of blood from his arm but he felt as if the world was spinning and the only thing unmoving was her piercing gaze.

He noticed how her cheeks flushed with crimson color, and how the green of her eyes became a darker shade of blue; she lowered her eyes to the ground without letting go of him.

Klaus breathed deeply before he smiled faintly in an effort to encourage her and take away her fear.

"Look at me, look at me. It's over," he promised her and the Queen blinked before she looked at him, almost startled. The sound of his voice was breaking the spell and the fear they were both trapped in.

"I've got you," he whispered and noticed how her breath hitched and her fingers wrapped tighter around his shirt for a moment, almost desperately.

"So you have," she said softly, noticing his bleeding arm. With tentative movements her fingers grazed his raw flesh under the torn leather beneath his cape. She caressed his upper arm with care and her chest heaved. She looked at him with a gaze full of pain and shame for being the cause of his suffering.

They stood silent for some long moments until more Musketeers hastily approached them and took the Queen from Klaus' hands in order to get her to safety.

To take her where she belonged. To her husband, his King.

Klaus watched motionless as she was taken away from him. She turned her head back towards him while the Musketeers rushed her towards the exit.

He felt her absence and his heart's rate slowed down, almost as if it sang a song of mourning and loss.

Klaus could hear the bells echoing and he noticed something sparkling on the floor.

He held his bleeding arm as he bent down and grasped with his wounded hand the golden cross from the marble floor. The chain was broken and the intricate design of the cross was one he had seen before.

It was the Queen's cross.

His blood tainted the metal in his hands and he looked at the exit through which his comrades had taken the Queen.

He fisted the cross, now tainted with his blood, in his hand before he hid the jewel inside his shirt's pocket.

Next to his heart.

.

.

.

From that day his life changed. He found another purpose for living. Another meaning. And it all came down to the Queen, Klaus thought as he turned his head. With a small smile he looked at _her_ as she curtseyed in front of her husband the King, casting a prolonged gaze towards him and walking to the gardens that were far from the court, her lady in waiting following her.

Elijah, the most noble of the musketeers, coughed and Klaus exhaled deeply and averted his gaze. Elijah threw him a warning glance and started walking in front of him. Klaus followed while every fiber of his being wanted to refuse his brother's logic.

He touched his chest and felt the golden cross beneath his shirt. It burned as it dangled from the leather cord he had attached it to.

After the attack at the Cathedral, Klaus had tried to return the cross to Queen Caroline but she wouldn't take it.

" _For the bravest of the musketeers,"_ she had said with a voice full of appreciation. She reached, covered his palms and held his hands in hers.

He could swear that the same jolts of unexplained emotion ran through her too when their hands touched.

" _A small token of my gratitude. May it keep you safe_ ," she told him with a clogged voice as she removed her hands and smiled, moving away.

From that day onward the cross remained fastened around Klaus' neck, always placed over his heart.

Elijah warned him to keep his head low and his infatuation in check. His brother's sharp eyes could see how he watched the Queen. The adoration that appeared in Klaus' eyes whenever Lady Caroline was close to him or even anywhere near his sight.

Elijah had repeatedly warned him to protect the King and to keep his eyes away from the King's consort, even if the Queen's gaze would never wander far away from Klaus whenever he was near her either.

It was gravity for them both.

It was treason for them all.

His brother, as always, was right. Lady Caroline was not like every other woman. She was the Queen.

And yet, somehow, whenever Klaus was watching her he could not see the Queen. He could she a whirlwind of emotions, hopes and dreams locked up inside the blue green shade of her eyes.

He could see all her despair, all her strength, all her beauty. He could see _her._

He was a musketeer. He would lay his life down for the King. He would bleed and he would give even his soul for his sovereign. He took an oath to protect the monarchs with his heart and his body.

But… he wouldn't give his life for the Queen. He would give more than that. But not for the Queen. Deep down he knew he would not protect the Queen of the nation he swore to service. Deep down he knew he would serve and he do everything upon his power to save and protect... _Caroline._

Klaus abruptly stopped walking and Elijah turned around and looked at him with hard eyes.

"Do not do this, brother," Elijah warned him but Klaus said nothing. He simply turned around and walked towards the gardens.

Maybe it was treason, maybe it was insanity, but it was his heart's command. A heart that belonged to Caroline.

A damaged heart that burned only for her.

* * *

_._

_._

_**7 June 1654** _

.

.

The crowds cheered and the bells rang in joyful tunes.

Klaus lowered his head and a nostalgic smile appeared. His heartbeat a booming sound of happiness as everyone bowed with respect in the presence of their new King.

When the Queen Regent and the King passed by, Klaus only raised his gaze to meets hers for a moment before he bowed his head in respect once more.

This was his duty as one of the Royal Musketeers after all. To serve and obey. To give his life.

And it was his life he indeed gave to the Queen. His life and his future. His heart and soul.

The years passed him by. His fame grew and so did his position inside the Musketeers.

He lived by a code of honor and yet in all of his days his secret desire spoke of unholy treason.

He had once told her that to love her was a treason against his country, but not to love her was a treason against his heart. And he had meant it.

So he devoted his life and soul to Caroline expecting nothing in return.

" _Then we will both die traitors." Was her answer to his devotion._

He grew restless. He grew distant from the world. His only dreams started and ended in his clandestine meetings with the Queen in the gardens and in secret passages.

" _If anyone sees... it is death," he had warned her one day; but her kiss was an entrapment he could not escape._

_She looked deeply into his eyes and with trembling hands she removed the crown from her hair and let it fall to the ground._

" _If I don't kiss you, I'll die anyway."_

For years his life began and ended only when he met Caroline. He was surrounded by beauty, by intrigue and danger but he only wanted her and her he could not have. Not completely. Not freely.

He wished for what he could never have and he became crueler, craving for the blood of those that would be unjust towards the woman he served and loved.

He became known as the most lethal, ruthless and loyal of the musketeers.

His finger would always linger on the trigger only for a moment of internal prayer before one more sin would weight upon his soul; his bullet would never miss the target. It was not hesitation, it was him prolonging the inevitable.

No, he never missed his target; his aim was always impeccable. In his mind it was his duty to protect the only person in the world that mattered to him.

_Caroline._

Klaus learned that prolonging one's fate makes the fall harder when the time comes. As the King's musketeer he had learned to shoot with precision and fight with the sword and the musket. He fought with honor and survived without it. He fought for his country but lived for himself a life loveless and hopeless until the day the crowned head, of the tempestuous beauty the blonde Queen was, turned around and cast him a gaze of longing.

Until he had taken a bullet for her and wore her cross next to his heart.

It had been inevitable. However cruel he may be, she had been more. He was shooting for the head. She had shot for his heart and she didn't even need a bullet.

And now, twenty five years later, as he knelt down offering once more his life and musket to the new sovereign, Klaus knew that his heart did not only belong to the former Queen Regent but also to her son, the King.

The new King that had inherited the Queen's smile and his father's eyes.

… _His eyes._


	14. For she is the Rose and Every Rose has its Thorn

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The God she so detested, the monster whose soul was dark with infamy, was ready to lay Kingdoms at her feet. He was ready to create the sun, the stars and the moon beneath the ground only for her. [Hades x Persephone / Klaroline AU]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Many thanks to Anastasia Dreams for helping me edit this drabble.
> 
> *Klaroline Greek Mythology AU :
> 
> \- Niklaus Mikaelson as Hades God of the Underworld.
> 
> \- Caroline Forbes as Persephone Goddess of Spring and Queen of the Underworld.

"Lost in Hell,-Persephone,  
Take her head upon your knee;  
Say to her, "My dear, my dear,  
It is not so dreadful here."

* * *

 

Another attempt at escape. Another failed endeavor.

The world was still and silent now.

Her grief and screams of agony at her inability to escape him reminded him of the first time she screamed and fought his unrelenting hold when his carriage took her away from her world and brought her down here.

Niklaus, the God of the Underworld known to the mortals as Hades and to those of his own kind as Klaus, sighed as he reached down and drew Caroline's light form close to his chest.

Caroline…Kore…innocence and provocation wrapped inside the tempestuous beauty of an immortal's body that rivaled in glamour even the Goddess of love and beauty herself.

She was now rendered powerless in his hands. The powers from her innate light almost extinguished. A fine sacrifice which upon their binding ceremony would welcome the birth of his Queen of darkness.

The one he would rename for the mortals to know as Persephone. She who destroys the light.

The terrible Queen of the dead whose name would never be a safe word to be spoken aloud. It was foretold and yet he didn't need the fates or destiny to tell him this. All he had to do was spare her a glance when she laughed and danced underneath the sunlight and the rain. He knew there and then that she was meant to be his and rule by his side. To ignite his night with light and melt the ice in his weary soul with her heat. The embers of her love would be more than enough to guide him through this endless night. To light the fire that would burn his loneliness away.

Now the warmth she once possessed was gone and coldness claimed her. She was becoming part of the Underworld he realized with sorrow and pride. And yet, her still tenacious nature found ways to refuse him and his world. Either by trickery or force she always ran away.

He wanted her even more because of this. No matter how futile it was, she never stopped trying.

This time even Cerberus sided with her. His loyal guardian was also enamored by Caroline and was unable to stop her.

She reached as far as the gates of Hades but to no avail. This was his domain and no one entered or left his realm without his permission.

How much more her. His future wife and Queen. The girl that used all the power that was left in her in order to break the boundaries of his world and escape back to her mother's Earth. The girl that blacked out as her power was no match to his.

If she was any other he would had sent them to the deepest pits of Tartarus but he could not bear the thought of her suffering. No matter how much she opposed him.

The ceremony for their wedding and her coronation was only a fortnight away and she was still trying to escape him at every chance she got.

* * *

_Caroline stood in front of him in her drenched once white now transparent chiton that clung to her body like a second skin. Her curves revealed to his hungry gaze._

_She was shivering and trembling like a leaf. She was freezing. The waters of forgetfulness were made of mist and ice and her encounter with them lasted more than it should._

_His rage at her absence had turned to worry but now the sight of her was giving birth to another emotion._

_His eyes roamed all over her succulent body._

_Klaus felt a desire so strong that he had to use all his will powerl in order to control himself and not drag her kicking and screaming to his bed and claim her for all eternity._

_He ran his hand over his unruly damp hair and watched as her blond mass of wet hair created a drizzling curtain around her bare shoulders. Tantalizing drops of water were falling over her skin, running down their path slowly._

_He gritted his teeth. Damn all the Gods he wanted her._

" _My dear if you were to give me a chance you would realize that it is not so dreadful here," he told her as he pondered this last attempt of hers to escape him._

_She had almost lost herself in Lethe._

_He had reached her just in time as she almost fell underneath the waters of Ameles potamos. He dove after her and resurfaced immediately and brought her back to the shore. The waters of the river falling like a steaming waterfall from their intertwined bodies. He had been terrified as she had already been drowsy and disoriented in his arms. Her gaze vacant._

_A few more seconds and she would have been lost in oblivion and he didn't want her in that way._

_He wanted her to be herself. He wanted her to feel and to know who she and he were._

_He wanted her to remember her earthly life and he wanted her to choose him despite her love for Earth. He wanted nothing more than for him to become more important than her memories and her past life and for her to embrace her future in the Underworld with a clear mind._

" _Give this place a chance, Caroline," he almost begged her and she raised her gaze to meet his. His heart swelling with shy hope only to settle in misery once more at the instant rejection that shone in her eyes._

" _How can I give you a chance when you are the one that took my choice away?" Caroline refused him once more this time with no pretences of respect at his Godly status. She was not addressing him as her Lord anymore nor did she look at him with fear and reverence._

_Her eyes now regarded him with sorrow and obstinacy. How he craved for her to call him by his name and to cast him a gaze of fondness. But no matter how much he tried her walls were always up and her heart shut down; It would seem that all the death that surrounded him had found refuge inside her heart now, for she bore no emotion for him._

_Maybe the waters of Lethe would be a remedy after all. But not for Caroline. In the end, maybe it was him that needed to forget._

* * *

At first Caroline's indignation and stubbornness amused him but now it only frustrated him. She refused to eat or leave her room. She refused to even spare a glance at him. She detested him to the point where she was ready to sacrifice what was left of her fragile godly powers if it would ensure her freedom from him.

The Underworld was a place that balanced the scale of life and energy. It was meant to suck vitality and to give death a refuge. The Goddess of Spring had felt the nature of this place all too well since without his grace her powers were waning away, feeding the darkness with her life before all life would once more fade away to nothing.

She hated him even more for this. He had not only stolen her freedom away but also everything she was meant to be. She was meant to be a servant of nature and life and not serve the throne of death.

Caroline knew that all Klaus had to do was bestow her with his grace and her powers would soon return to her as all the Underworld was controlled by him. Not even Mikael, the King of the Gods, could have powers in the Underworld without Klaus's permission. One Klaus never granted when it came either to Mikael nor her.

Caroline, the ageless spirit of Spring, was losing her powers and Klaus was not ready to grant her any reprieve for as long as she denied him.

Caroline knew that all she had to do was give in to him and he would shower her with Spring and she would blossom once more.

But he never did for she never accepted him.

* * *

_He had taken_ _her to the Elysian Fields. Klaus hoped the serenity of this place would mend her wounded soul. However it only seemed to make her ache for all the things she had lost as even this heaven was a pale imitation of the real sun and light she so missed._

_He closed the space between them with uncertain steps in fear that she would once more back away from him._

_His fingertips tried to reach the edge of her lips but she tilted her head away._

_The emerald that was locked in her gaze became clearer as tears welled up inside her eyes._

_His hand fell to his side in resignation. He hated seeing Caroline so weak and powerless and he knew that she missed the life force of Springtide that she embraced upon birth._

_He could simply give her his grace and her powers would return to her in full force, however, one of the reasons he refused to give her his favor was because he wanted her to be able to appreciate the powers of the Underworld that would be born inside her upon their union. The only way could happen is if her former abilities were forgotten. At least for now._

_Deep down Klaus knew that what she craved the most was to feel the air and the earth again and to regenerate above ground. To leave this place behind. To leave him behind and regard him only as a passing nightmare._

_If he was not so selfish, he would have already acquiesced. Right now for the first time in his immortality he was ready to relent. If only she knew the power she had over him. How one smile of hers would be enough for him to senselessly give in to Caroline's wishes._

_Seeing her in such pain hurt him. He wanted her to bend enough in order to let him in but not to completely break._

_If only she was more compliant…he would give her everything she ever wanted and more. Much more._

" _Sweetheart, you could always replenish you powers if you were to travel for at least one moon above. Nature would heal all that was lost," he honestly told her and the fury that blazed inside her eyes made him smile._

_If he could not have her love then her rage would have to suffice, as it was one of the few things that reminded him how she, in contrast with everything else in this world, was still alive._

_No matter how weak her body was becoming here, her anger still blazed hot. Her spirit might have been a bit grazed but it still thrived. That is why he liked her._

" _How can you be so cruel? You are the one that is keeping me here against my will. How can my pain amuse you like this?" She accused him and Klaus noticed with delight how the winds rose around them._

_Caroline had no control over the power that still lingered inside her. If she had she would not waste what was left of it so carelessly. In times of despair and fury she still commanded nature's elements, even in a place where nature did not exist._

_This only reaffirmed that he was right. She was meant to be his Queen. She yielded great power even in her weakest moment._

" _It is not your presence in my world I am only after, my Queen. It is your loyalty. Give it to me willingly and I will give you free passage to the world above for as long as you promise to always return to me," he proposed. In a shroud of smoke a pomegranate appeared on his hand, bleeding with the bitter juices of this dimension._

_Klaus extended the tempting fruit towards her in a daring challenge. He wanted to tempt her. He wanted her to bow to him before their nuptials. He wanted her to walk willingly down the aisle and to belong to him long before they would pledge the binding oaths of betrothal. To come to his bed, out of desire and not duty._

_One bite and she would be willingly bound by his side for all eternity. Then she would be free to come and go freely in between worlds since she would not be able to ever escape him since the Underworld would always draw her back._

" _You would ask such a high price?" she asked him with a trembling voice. The forbidden fruit in his hand was a promise for him but a horrid unbreakable chain of damnation for her._

_Before she could even exhale the breath she was holding in his other hand grabbed her from the nape of her neck and brought her closer to him. His face lingered an inch away from hers._

_His eyes shone with determination, his forehead resting against hers._

" _Higher. Much higher," he whispered and the huskiness of his voice sent waves of desire rushing through her veins._

_Molten lava burned its way into the streams of her blood, leaving nothing but primal longing inside. A longing that was eating her bones and spitting out their shreds. Shreds that attacked her quivering heart. The fiery organ that reminded her that she was not the girl everyone thought her to be. But a woman._

_A woman who was ready to doom herself into sin. Not with the arrogant deadly God she detested. But, with the man she wanted more than anything else she had ever wanted before._

_And that terrified her the most and armed her resolve even more. She could not lose herself like that. Next to him she would be strong, ageless, fearless but she would have to violently let go of all that she held dear. The safety net she was born into would dissolve into nothingness. The small snug world that always kept her protected and secure would cease to exist. Giving in to Klaus was like letting go of Spring for the Winter nights. Passionate nights but still oh so very dark._

_As it was in his nature to cast away all life so it was in her nature to keep life safe. She could not succumb to him for this was against her own nature no matter how much his promise seemed to be calling her closer._

_And yet she refused to acknowledge that traitorous little whisper in the back of her mind that was telling her that life and death always walked together. Intertwined. Never the one without the other. The two sides of the same coin. For the afterlife could never exist without life and life would never be appreciated without death. To each beginning an end. A connection incessant like the one she seemed to share with Klaus against all logic and sanity._

_She unconsciously stretched herself closer to him. Eyeing his lips with need and longing. Her chest brushed against the silver plate of his armor and she felt her breasts swelling as goosebumps prickled along her skin._

_The shivers that racked her body resembled the wind that seemed to rise as the sky of the Elysian Fields turned from purple to bleeding crimson._

_In reality, it was not simply her loyalty that he craved. It was not even her body. It was her heart. Her mind and soul. They both knew it and yet no matter how irrational it was her heart was still fighting against the all consuming lust that seemed to always appear when they were near._

_Hope filled Klaus' eyes as Caroline took the pomegranate from his hand._

_She took a step back and brought the fruit closer to her half open lips as her gaze remained locked with his._

_But it was only a game of hers. It seemed that he was not the only one whose cruelty was boundless. They were indeed the same. A perfect match made in Hell. She seemed determined to hurt him as much as he was hurting her by keeping her away from everything she loved. Her viciousness was far greater than his as she dangled the hope of the impossible in front of him only to violently rip it away._

_She condemned both to keep on going with their game of pull and push. To never be complete. To always clash against each other no matter the cost and the pain._

_She threw the fruit away with all the strength that still remained inside her. Its seeds spilling on the soft grass._

* * *

And yet the God she so hated, the monster whose soul was dark with infamy, was ready to lay kingdoms at her feet. He was ready to create the sun, the stars and the moon beneath the ground only for her. To bestow to her all her heart's desires if only she would cast him one loving smile.

Even like that, however, as he descended lower and lower to Acheron's embrace and stared at her unconscious form, he knew that she was right and he was wrong; her Springtime did not belong to the reign of his never ending twilight; but his egotism was far too great for him to let her go.

Now that he had basked in her light, now that he knew how it was to live in her presence, he could never let her go.

White flawless skin, pale and bright. Golden hair like the wheat that shimmered under the scorching sunlight of the noon.

She was such a contrast to the gloom of the underworld that she was now forced to reside in.

The aura of spring still clung to the ivory skin of her face. Lightening his world like a single candlelight in the blackest starless night.

A tingle of hurt, of an emotion so far unknown to him, passed through his unbeating heart and filled him with regret.

Her sunlight would slowly ebb away. It would give its place to a darker glow that would resemble the incandescence of the atramentous crown she would soon wear.

He knew that whatever he touched was bound to wither away and that slowly the brilliance would fade and her inner light would bloom in a shade darker.

And yet somehow it was meant to be. Her place was by his side. The girl would give its place to his Queen. A glorious marvel no mortal would ever bear to see and no other God but him to touch.

Her spring soul would now shimmer in his ever ending darkness. Her stubbornness would give away to a fierce strength the world had never seen before. She would be feared as much as he was… if not more.

For she was the rose and every rose has its thorn.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The poem at the beginning of the drabble was from:
> 
> Edna St. Vincent Millay. Collected Poems


	15. Rogue Assassin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He had chased her to the far ends of the world and back and now he finally caught up with her. Klaus wanted her back but Caroline's heart could no longer bear the weight of all the blood they had shed. From the moment she ran she knew that war was coming; so she whispered the words on his lips first. Game on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Many thanks to Anastasia Dreams for helping me edit this drabble.
> 
> *Assassin's Trope _ AU/AH _ Loosely inspired by CW's Arrow

The old café in the middle of the small town was buzzing with noise. Caroline usually loved the warm rustic atmosphere and the bright colors but there was nothing warm to surround her now. The air had turned cold as she sat against Klaus who was looking at everything around him with distaste.

Of course. The Prince of the Order, the high and mighty Hybrid considered places like this to be beneath him. He preferred luxury and the best life had to offer. And if life was not offering, he would take whatever he wanted anyway.

She managed to dodge him for almost two years and she had found refuge in a small town in Spain. She didn't know Spanish before coming here but after a few months she had learned how to communicate and slowly she made friends and a home. She was reluctant to create ties with people at first but then she realized that she didn't leave the order to bury herself in misery and solidarity. She wanted a normal life. She knew she could not return back to her old home in the US and Klaus would of course search the countries he knew she could easily survive in first. He was aware she knew Latin, French, Russian, Arabic and Chinese and of course having English as her maternal language meant that she had a lot of ground to find refuge in. He also knew that she surely had a back up plan in order to go underground and create a new identity and this was why Caroline chose to go to different places all together and not use any of her old contingency plans.

She started with Japan and didn't stop. She went to Korea, Baghdad and Nepal Klaus almost caught her in Cambodia so she fled to Egypt and from there to Greece. She went to Northern Europe later on and she didn't stop until she was sure that her trail had gone cold. After Germany she finally reached Spain. And then even though logic dictated to keep moving she decided to finally stop. She changed her name and her style and settled for a small apartment.

However Klaus was an excellent tracker. It was expected that sooner or later he would find her.

The moment he stepped into town she felt his presence. The shivers that went down her spine and the goosebumps that covered her whole body were enough of a sign to let her know that Klaus was close. She always could sense his presence. Her first instinct was to run but Klaus loved the hunt and she realized that she didn't want to give him the pleasure. Most of all she didn't want to allow him and the Order to take away from her the chance to finally settle down and have a normal life.

If they wanted her dead, then so be it. Let them come.

And so Klaus came. No others followed so far. Klaus started stalking her and the real game of cat and mouse began. Until he finally came at her doorstep demanding an audience.

Caroline was ready to fight and die fighting if she had to but Klaus claimed he didn't want to kill her for her betrayal. He only wanted her back.

For he was not only her mentor but also her lover. And yet she would rather die than go back. Because no matter how much her body longed for his touch, being with Klaus meant dancing with death and destruction and her soul could not bear it anymore.

They had now reached an impasse. Klaus wanted her to come back to him and by extension to the Order and the only thing she wanted was to cut ties. For good. She asked him to go away and pretend he never found her, but of course, Klaus was not going to give her that respite. If anything he made it clear that if there was one person inside the organization that wanted to restore her back to their leagues it was him.

Caroline had agreed to meet him in the café today. She already knew his tactics and his stalling methods and she understood that her time was up. Klaus was going to strike. If not her then the people she had grown to care for. Her neighbors and friends. Her coworkers. He would call them collateral damage. And he would push until she would be unable to pull anymore.

Right now both of them had made sure to case their surroundings. Caroline had installed cameras and hidden weapons to several places inside the town including this café. Some of them Klaus had surely found and disabled. She was sure that Klaus had also taken his own precautions. She could already tell he was carrying a blade at his side and more in his boots. He also carried a gun under his jacket. She had opted for the blade in her thigh and for darts. She only hoped that Klaus would not make her use the lethal ones.

When the waiter came with their orders Caroline plastered a smile on her face and thanked him politely. To the outside world both she and Klaus looked like two friends hanging out together.

Once they were alone again she turned to face him with a glare.

"I have built a life for me here Klaus. If you think I'm gonna let you take it away from then you have another thing coming," she declared and Klaus rolled his eyes at her bravado.

"Come on now, sweetheart. You can't possible expect me to believe that you would actually miss this. A dull life between commoners? This absurdity is beneath you," he said with distaste as he gestured to the small square around them dismissively.

"While slitting people's throats and torture is what I am made for? Maybe I am. Maybe it is your throat I need to snap," she sarcastically bit out and Klaus leaned back to his chair. His fingers tapping the surface of the table rhythmically.

"This is a dangerous game you are playing Caroline. If you do not return with me the Head of the Order will send more assassins after you. It is only a matter of time before they turn up on your door and even I won't be able to protect you. They will not show you the same mercy as I do. They will come after your head," he warned her. He didn't miss a bit as he simply presented her the facts.

Caroline gritted her teeth before regaining her calm composure. Her voice held steel and her eyes held fire. She was not girly little Caroline anymore. She was not going to be intimidated by Klaus or any other ever again. She could handle herself and it was time to prove this to him and to everyone that would come after her. If they wanted blood then blood they would get.

"Let them come," she resolutely told him with a bitter smile that made Klaus cork up an elegant eyebrow.

"I've never pegged you for suicidal," he said in a disappointed tone that was meant to make her see how stupid she sounded. It was the same tone he was using whenever she was failing at his tests during her training.

"More like homicidal," she snorted and Klaus smirked.

"And there I thought you were so tired of all that death; and here you are ready to make a stand and make heads roll," he remarked with satisfaction and Caroline rolled her eyes annoyed.

Then Klaus' gaze changed. It became serious and urgent.

"You can't change who you are Caroline. The old girl you used to be died and the new one is fearless and bloodthirsty. A picket fence is not going to make you happy," he promised her with a knowing look.

Caroline titled her head to the side and looked at the people that passed by them. People that laughed and had lives and a future.

"I'll decide what will make me happy," she mumbled under her breath. Klaus was right. She was not happy right now. Her old self had indeed died at the ship accident. She was not happy because her heart was broken. Because she had forgotten how happiness without guilt looked like.

"You were happy. In my arms," Klaus reminded her in a low voice full of emotion. An alluring seduction that made her heart beat faster. She remembered how he had become her only moments of laughter. How his hands roamed over her body. How she could sleep soundly in his arms. She knew that his body count was far bigger than hers and his methods far more gruesome and yet the storm in her heart would cease only when he was near. It seemed as if his darkness always ignited the light in her.

She gazed at him and saw how intently he was looking at her. Taking in her every reaction. She shook her head breaking the spell.

"Klaus, I am not doing this with you," she breathed out tiredly.

Klaus leaned over forward, crossing his hands over the table.

"You won't survive a direct confrontation with the Order. They will keep coming for you and in the end you won't get the simple life you desire anyhow. You will fall," he hissed, his eyes blazing with anger. She could see how tense he was. How his eyes conveyed the rage that roared inside him and how he was finding her stubbornness grating.

Caroline smirked and raised a mocking eyebrow at him.

"I have survived you have I not?" she provoked him sweetly.

They locked gazes as their history and their memories unfolded inside their eyes.

Yes, she had survived him, knowing all too well that she would not have survived without him and he knew that. He never let her forget it.

.

.

She still remembered the waves that crashed on her. The burning sensation of salt in her throat as she choked on the sea water. She remembered a lot of water and cold. The sun and the birds.

She remembered how a long time ago she had been so excited to travel and that innocent voyage had turned to her worst nightmare. A sea storm wrecked the cruise ship and she was the sole survivor.

And she didn't think she would survive. She faced starvation and exhaustion. She succumbed to hallucinations and hypothermia and when she finally let go, two strong hands brought her back to life.

A deep voice with an accent that made her feel safe.

"Shh…you are safe. I have you." were the words that had managed to pierce the darkness. And then she saw blue. Not the blue of the sea she grew to hate but the deepest blue she had seen in a man's eyes. They belonged to the man that had saved her after being endless days stranded at the far ends of the Indian Ocean.

His name was Klaus. He took her in. He nursed her back to health. And he took her under his wing. He taught her everything he knew. How to fight. How to kill. How to maim...how to love.

The first time she saw him fight she giggled and clapped. She laughed as he bowed theatrically at her and she enjoyed seeing him fight and always win against his opponents. It was a rush of adrenaline and soon she got to experience it first hand.

What she didn't know at first was that Klaus merciful benevolence came with a price. His mercy put Caroline in his eternal debt.

It was much later she learned that he was part of an ancient caste of warrior assassins. It was the night she asked him to let her call her mother and tell her she was okay. He refused as he had also refused to let her go. Her anger was soon replaced with an incredulous emotion of disbelief as Klaus revealed to her that the hidden in the mountains city was not just a place far away from civilization but also an old Order that existed in the shadows. Their existence nothing but a lost legend in time. And since she had been brought to their city and since she was saved by them she would never be able to leave.

She tried. But, it was pointless. Klaus kept her close and trapped inside the guest room he had turned into a prison. And so he had given her a choice. She could decide to remain a prisoner or she could become one of them. And Caroline became one of them with the hope that maybe that would give her a chance to escape but once she tasted true power she realized that she did not want to escape or go back. She found she enjoyed her new abilities. She liked being strong and able to take down an army on her won.

With Klaus' guidance she turned into the most lethal assassin the world had ever met. Time passed and she became his best student and stepped up in the ranks of the Order. At first the thrill was enough to blind her with pride and excitement but as her body count grew she started seeing in the eyes of her victims, the eyes of the people she once knew. The eyes of her mother and of her friends. Suddenly her targets became people with feelings and potential and she was ending their lives as if they were dolls for her to break. The more she killed the more she was going numb inside and soon enough Klaus' love was not enough to take her mind away from the pain. Pain she inflicted on herself and others. She became more bloodthirsty and she lost herself completely.

Klaus' initial 'kindness' had turned into a blade forged in flame she got to yield. But it was much later on that she realized the weight the blade carried.

At first it was so easy. Effortless really. Nights of silk and pleasure followed endless days of training. Pain became her closest acquaintance but in the nights it was Klaus that would take care of her wounds. Wounds he inflicted as he trained her with blades and guns. Her body turned to a weapon and Klaus took great pride in creating a warrior out of her. It took time, years and a lot of blood until she became his equal.

After that, it was only the passion that bound them as both of them took separate assignments and would miss each other for months at a time. And there were times she longed to talk to him. To make him understand the emptiness she felt inside and how her soul was rotting. She wanted to make him understand. To make him see past his own conviction and murderous ways.

But she never did talk to him. Until it was too late. Until she could take no more.

The memories of her old life would not allow her to rest at nights. The blood on her hands burned. The death she carried haunted her in her every waking moment and so she ran. Far away. Far away from all the death. Far away from Klaus. She had pledged obedience, undying loyalty to the Order and to Klaus but she had broken her vows. She knew it would be only a matter of time before they would come after her. Before he would come after her.

And so it happened. He found her and their war started.

.

.

Klaus looked at her now, sharing the same memories and he pushed back his head and narrowed his eyes at her.

"Do not make me your enemy, sweetheart."

His threat was engulfed in menace strong enough to tear down nations. Caroline simply smiled at him.

"From the moment you taught me everything you knew, you had to know this moment was coming. Either let me be or make your move," she challenged and Klaus stared at her seriously. He assessed her statement and Caroline saw the exact moment when realization dawned on him. She would not back down. Not ever.

"You believe you can face me and win?" he incredulously asked her before sending her a sharp look full of danger. "You can't."

Caroline beamed at him.

"You know what happens when people tell me I can't do something, don't you? I always prove them wrong," she reminded him and Klaus leaned back at his chair shaking his head.

"You think you can kill me, sweetheart?" he dared her with a bemused voice. And yet his question held more layers than simply the sarcasm he was letting out.

Could she kill him? Even if she could match his skills, would she be able to deliver the final blow?

The thought of killing Klaus was making her feel empty and even the idea was provoking a sorrow she never felt before. One that reached deep down into her heart and pulled on the few strings that were left so hard and so harshly it was as if the muscle turned into an organ of fire pumping acid to her veins.

And yet, she also knew that she felt that way because she would. She would push a bullet into his brain or a knife into his heart if she had to. Maybe, that would be her mercy. Maybe this was how their story would end. And maybe, if he was the one to win he would show her the same compassion and take her life instead of letting her drown in a life that was killing her.

She looked at him and gave him a nod that made him still.

"You once said you are I are the same so you already know I can. And maybe I even will," she whispered and raised up her walls. There was no point in continuing this debate. Klaus got the answers he looked for. If he ever returned her to the Order, it would be only in a coffin and only if she did not kill him first.

She dropped some dollars on the table and got up. She anticipated his move, but even like that, Klaus was extremely fast and stealthy. He jumped up and got in her way. His body too close to hers. Their chests almost touching. The moment he grabbed her upper arm was the exact moment she grabbed hold of his wrist. Both of them not relinquishing their holds. They stared at each other and Caroline held her breath. She had missed this. She had missed him.

She shook her head and pushed down every fond memory she had of him. She had made her choice and she was not going to return. Not to him. Not to the Order.

"I am never coming back, Klaus," she evenly declared and Klaus pursed his lips before he let go of her arm. She let her fingers uncurl from his wrist too.

"We shall see about that sweetheart," he threatened and Caroline smirked. She took a step closer and noticed how Klaus reached for his blade under his jacket.

Caroline's lips touched his and slowly she placed her palm over his. Klaus's gaze darkened and she could feel how every molecule of his body was on edge. She gently pushed his hand down, sheathing his blade back to its leather case.

She let her mouth seductively whisper two words onto his lips. Letting him swallow them and taste their bitter finality.

"Game on."


	16. No Rest for the Wicked

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In the beginning the angel Niklaus was cast out of Heaven and condemned to rule Hell for all eternity. Until he decided to take a vacation. And then an Archangel he once knew all too well was sent to Earth with every intention of restoring the Prince of Darkness back to his rightful throne. But maybe this is what the Devil wanted all along.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Many thanks to Anastasia Dreams for helping me edit this drabble.
> 
> *Devil/Angel AU _ Inspired by the show Lucifer
> 
> *Religion references (Christianity). No intention of offending anyone's religion or faith.

_**In the beginning the Angel Niklaus was cast out of Heaven and condemned to rule Hell for all eternity.** _

_**Until he decided to take a vacation…** _

* * *

_Oh, there ain't no rest for the wicked_

* * *

 

And the world stood still. Her presence shifting the world from its axis.

The irony was not lost on him as the sound of flapping wings, ones so familiar and never forgotten, reached his ears. He did not turn to look at her but he felt the warmth she was emanating and the electric currents that surged through the fabric of reality that surrounded the realm of humans.

He heard her steps echoing on the pavement and after all this time he finally heard her sweet voice again.

Only there was nothing sweet about it now. Her tone held steel and unyielding fire. Holy fire.

"Your return to hell has been requested," Caroline announced authoritatively.

Klaus smirked and turned around to face her. His eyes scanned her form. She was clad in black robes with gold and red armor. So his little angel became what she always wanted. An Archangel. One he was willing to bet was quite proud for this achievement and yet her pride was lost in a place where it was condemned as a sin.

"Maybe I would be more inclined to return if you were to join me sweetheart," he challenged her. His voice was pure seduction meant to ignite Caroline's curiosity and desire. One that would not be that difficult to awake. Caroline was never one for particular restraint. She thrived when it came to excelling and she struggled for control but her hopes and dreams had a much greater reach than the Paradise lost to him stretching behind the gates of Heaven.

Caroline smiled playfully. She took a step forward and he noticed how she seemed to be on edge and ready to reach for the blade she was carrying on her belt.

"And since when does the Prince of Darkness wants company," she questioned bemused. Klaus beamed at her flirty tone. Full of sarcasm and indignation and also piqued with a challenge.

Closer and closer their steps carried them towards each other.

"Since he is missing a Queen," he replied with conviction and Caroline tilted her head back, assessing him. She was regarding him as an opponent and her amusement vanished. Her gaze hardened. A tint of hurt and accusation filled her eyes and Klaus felt her sting in his heart. For her kind, he was beneath them. His world of torture, fire and debauchery a mockery of all they held Holy. And yet, none of them shed even a tear when he was condemned unjustly to the pits of eternal damnation for daring to have what God gave to humanity but denied his Angels.

Free will.

The one he was sure Caroline craved above all.

"You fell Klaus. You are the one that belongs to Hell. Not me," she accused him. Her tone held no emotion, its cadence bold as brass. Caroline's fire had bloomed. Her light was meant to scorch and blind and incinerate. It was the kind of fire that belonged along side Hell's inferno. By his side.

"Not you," Klaus taunted, "Not yet," he let his voice sing in the air and his mouth turned to a crooked smile at the anger that appeared in Caroline's face. She pursed her lips, her brow creasing.

Such a beauty wasted. Untainted by the longings of the flesh. Unappreciated by the hands of a lover. Such a cold fate void of emotion and desire. A pity for a woman like Caroline. Her body was ready to hum and he wanted nothing more than to bury his fingers in the long blonde threads of her hair and taste her mouth. His lips yearned to caress hers and have her melt in his arms.

"Not ever," Caroline denied but Klaus noticed the shiver that passed through her.

The edges of his mouth carved to a taunting grin.

"We shall see," he whispered and licked his lips thoughtfully, "Wrath has been my fatal flaw and sin. And yet, it is not the only one out of Seven, Angel. There is also need, desire…lust," he tempted her.

Caroline gazed at him defiantly but the emerald of her eyes darkened as her cheeks flushed. That blend of temptation and anger were making his blood boil.

A long time ago she had warned him to keep his faith. To not let go. To not become her enemy. To not let his heart darken, but he had not listened. And now, he knew exactly why.

"Don't underestimate the allure of darkness, Caroline; even the purest hearts are drawn to it," he told her. Knowing all too well that the allure of her light was what drew the darkest of hearts, his heart, to her.

A light ready to tear down worlds.

And right now only him.

Her majestic wings stretched out and she almost delivered a lethal blow to his neck with one of them. He stilled and looked down at the end of her divinity that was one inch away from tearing his jugular apart. He admired the beauty of her wings and for a moment he missed the ones he had cut from his back. His way of locking himself out of Hell and having Caroline chase after him.

Her eyes blazed with anger and those once upon soft feathers so full of light became sharp daggers ready to slit his throat as their deadly now hard edges scraped his skin. He held his breath and locked his gaze with Caroline. He knew her a long time ago. The angel of light who fought by his side. Her weapon of choice the spear. They both knew of eternity, and yet, time had no measure now that they faced each other once more after all these centuries.

He had not missed Heaven. He had missed her. And knowing she descended to earth to find and restore him to his throne made everything worth it.

Caroline gave him a curt nod. A promise they were not over. She would be back.

She vanished with a flutter of wings, leaving him breathless and the world once more in motion.

"Welcome to my world, sweetheart," he whispered with a dangerous smirk.

This was war. And if there was one thing the Devil knew all too well was that all was fair in love and war.


End file.
